Friday Night Phone Tag
by Empty Pen09
Summary: Rachel Berry and Quinn Fabray's weekly Friday night phone chats lead to a closeness neither girl sees coming.
1. Chapter 1

Week 1

Rachel-NYADA

Rachel checked her watch for the third time and finally allowed herself to breath normally. Maybe she was busy. Class, some sort of orientation, maybe things got in the way. That happened sometimes, life got in the way. Maybe that was what was going on now. Life.

Still she couldn't help but be a little disappointed. She'd been looking forward to this call all day. All through the boring rigmarole of first days and looking over class syllabus' she'd thought about this moment. The moment when she could sit back, relax, and chat with Quinn about, well, whatever.

She looked at the clock one last time before huffing and pushing herself away from her desk. She'd done her best to keep busy. She'd even spent the past ten minutes tidying up, being sure none of her roommate's mess encroached on her tidy side of the room. When she finished that she'd read through the first act of the semester play her class would be performing as a freshman project.

An hour behind schedule. Quinn was an hour late with her phone call. It was disappointing, a deflating of a carefully constructed balloon. She considered simply calling Quinn and initiating the conversation herself but decided against it. Quinn said SHE'D call. She said SHE would call first if Rachel made the first trip down. Rachel knew Quinn wasn't backing out but the prospect of already being thrown off course was frustrating. They weren't even through the first week and Quinn was already getting off script. Not being able to make things happen simply wouldn't do. She was not going to coddle Quinn. Rachel knew their friendship wouldn't survive if she had to do all the work. Quinn was going to have to meet her half way.

Rachel answered her phone on the forth ring. It was after midnight on Friday, technically Saturday morning, and despite being away at college in the city that never sleeps Rachel was sleeping. Past tense. The phone had rang pulling her out of a deep and restful slumber.

"Hello?"

"Rachel I can't do this. I don't know anyone here and everybody is so." Quinn's voice trailed off. Quinn sounded exhausted. Tired in a way that didn't involve rest. She sounded beat down, mentally exhausted and emotionally worn.

Rachel had seen Quinn Fabray in many states over the years but there was something about the girl's voice that shook her up a bit. Quinn didn't fold. Rachel had never seen her fold. She was a fighter, a girl who would stop at nothing to get her way. The phrase 'I can't' didn't seem to be in her vocabulary. Yet here she was, worn down and full of self doubt. This surely wasn't HER Quinn. Her Quinn was a tough girl. The ultimate mean girl, this new girl simply wouldn't do.

"Quinn, slow down. What's going on?" Rachel asked. Quinn hadn't called that afternoon as promised but she was calling now. After midnight. Better late than never Rachel assumed. At least she'd followed through. Seven hours late yes, but she had come through.

"I don't like the people here. They treat me like I'm some sort of farm girl."

Rachel wanted to laugh. She'd gotten the same treatment from the big city kids here in New York. "Quinn they don't understand where we come from. To them we may as well be that family from the Beverly Hillbillies. It's up to us to show them that Ohio is in the United States."

"My roommate's father is a billionaire Rachel. Billionaire with a B. She barely even talks to me. She keeps calling me Gwen."

Rachel laughed causing Quinn to pout through the phone.

"It's not funny. They're all mean here. I don't fit in."

Rachel took a deep breath. "Where are you right now?"

"My room. There was this party that I didn't get invited to because I wasn't cool enough."

This simply wouldn't do. If a girl like Quinn was doubting herself what hope did SHE have. She needed to give the girl a pep talk. Rebuild her ego and self esteem.

"What is the first thing you did when you met your roommate?"

Quinn seemed to mull it over. "I introduced myself."

Okay. "Alright now what's the first thing you did when you met Santana Lopez."

Quinn laughed. "Santana was intimidating. She was pretty and athletic and super thin and in shape. I needed leverage so I looked for her weak spot."

"Right and that was?" She asked.

"Brittany." Quinn said proudly. "She clung to Brittany like a life raft."

Rachel nodded knowingly. "Okay. Well find this girl's Brittany and put the screws to her."

"She's not a lesbian." Quinn said completely missing the point.

Rachel laughed, genuinely amused. "Not literally. I mean find her weak spot and chop her down to size. It doesn't matter how much money she has, we all have a secret or an insecurity. Find hers and take the power back."

Quinn made a sound with her mouth letting Rachel know that she'd heard her. Instead of saying thank you or acknowledging it in any way she switched gears. "I'm sorry I didn't call earlier. I know I was supposed to call you at five."

"It's okay." Rachel lied. It wasn't okay though, she'd waited for an hour and a half for that phone call before she realized it wasn't coming. "You know what Quinn, it's not okay. I waited for you. I waited for you and you let me down."

"It won't happen again Rachel I swear." Quinn said.

"It can't. I won't be pushed to the side. If you tell me things are one way then they have to actually BE that way Quinn. We're too far away and life is too complicated now for us to not put forth the effort. I want you in my life but if you don't want me in yours we shouldn't waste each other's time."

"I know Rachel. I'm sorry." Was all Quinn said. Five words.

"I accept your apology." Rachel said hoping to smooth things back over.

"Do you want to go back to sleep?" Quinn asked.

"I can stay up. Talk to me. Tell me about your first week. I want to hear everything. Start with your first class of the week."

Quinn chuckled. "That's easy. Monday morning I have a regular class. Not drama. Economics. I'm sitting in that class Rachel and it hit me like lightning. I'm at Yale. Even though I'm a drama girl I can still parlay this into a business degree if I play my cards right. I mean I want to be an actress but a business degree from Yale is a hell of a backup plan."

"If I strike it rich one day you can be my manager." Rachel teased.

"You got yourself a deal." Quinn said. Rachel could practically hear her smiling through the phone.

Week 2

Quinn-Yale

The first thing Quinn noticed about Rachel's voice was that she sounded tired. Exhausted even. Still she called at the time they'd arranged when they'd said their goodbye's back in Lima. On the last day of summer the night before they head off to college Rachel and Quinn made a pact to stay in touch. They agreed that despite both moving in different directions they would stay in contact, stay friends. It was Rachel's idea they do the early evening phone calls every Friday. Quinn had agreed but hadn't taken it seriously until she'd heard how upset Rachel was when she didn't follow through that very first Friday. It wasn't until she called Rachel late that first week and was faced with the possibility of losing her that she realized it was actually important to her too.

"You sound tired, are you sick?" Quinn asked. She had never known Rachel to be sick, she couldn't even remember her missing a day of school.

"Elliptical," Rachel said between breaths. "I worked out for a while. I needed some stress relief."

Rachel needed stress relief, that was new. "Why, what's going on?"

"Nothing," Rachel said without hesitation. Still Quinn knew it was a lie.

"Don't lie to me Man Hands."

Rachel laughed. "Did you just call me Man Hands?"

"Yes. Now spit it out."

Rachel's end of the phone went silent. Quinn wasn't used to Rachel being quiet. Her obnoxious talking and self obsession was part of her quirky charm. Listening to Rachel constantly pat herself on the back was the thing she missed most about being in Lima and the Glee club.

"We had an audition today for our freshman year project. We're doing Children of God. I auditioned for the lead and I didn't get it."

Quinn wanted to laugh. Rachel was obsessive about competition and when things didn't go her way she freaked out. Every audition she blew was the end of the world. Every competition she lost was a travesty of justice.

"What happened? Is the other girl a teacher's pet? Did she bribe the judges, what?"

"She was better than me."

Quinn's mind went blank. Did she just say the other girl was better? That didn't sound right. Better than Rachel, was that even possible?

"What do you mean she's better? Did she sing it differently?"

"No. She was better. I sang first. I sang well. Then she got up on that stage and she blew me out of the water. It's how you guys must have felt watching me back in Lima. I felt totally helpless."

Quinn couldn't help but laugh. There's the old Rachel. "You never made me feel helpless."

"Really?" She asked, sounding a bit surprised. "You always looked so helpless."

"Rachel get back to the story."

"Oh, okay. Well she got the lead. I'm her understudy. I've never been an understudy in my life. I was sitting in the audience listening to her perform and it occurred to me that this may not work out. I could fail. I've dedicated my whole life to this and I may not be good enough."

Uh, oh. "Rachel you're being silly. Fame and success in show business isn't all about talent. Sometimes you have to have the it factor. You have that."

"You're just being polite."

Quinn had never heard Rachel turn down a compliment and realized this may actually take some work. "Seriously. Madonna. Brittany Spears. Ashton Kutcher. They aren't the greatest at what they do but they have the IT. Sometimes talent wins out but sometimes it's that other thing that people have that makes them a star."

"You don't think I'm talented?"

Good grief. "That's not what I'm saying Rachel. I'm saying that you're talented but talent isn't all you have to offer. Your special, you have talent and the IT. I'd put my money on you before anybody else."

"Quinn you're just."

Quinn cut her off. "Stop this. Stop all this moping around and doubting yourself. You're Rachel freaking Berry. You're not anybody's understudy. Stop acting like you're some victim. So you got beat, it's good for you. Sue Sylvester told me that everybody needs to lose at least once. I mean big time shame faced, cry on the bus ride home lose. Everybody should have to stand on the sidelines and watch the winner celebrate, watch them give their acceptance speech, see them hoist the trophy over their heads. She told me once that it builds character. Rachel you needed to lose. You needed to do your best and have it not be good enough just one time. Just once so you know how everybody else is going to feel every time you get the big part, every time you win the big award. It's about being humble Rachel. How you learn from this is what people are going to think of you. Are you the arrogant know it all constantly patting herself on the back or are you the winner who doesn't rub it in everyone's face that she beat them. Again."

Rachel laughed on her end of the phone. "So this is supposed to be some kind of lesson. I'm supposed to be humbled by this."

"At least pretend to be yeah. Think about how you feel and then think about what you need to hear to make you feel better and whenever you beat people you say those things. It's called empathy Rachel and you don't have it but the cool thing is you can fake it."

"Fake it?" Rachel asked incredulous. "Why would I want to do that? Who wants to be a loser?"

Goodness this is impossible. "Just pretend to care about other people's feelings. You come off as a snobby bitch sometimes Rachel. The people you beat don't want to constantly hear how great you are. You have to care about their feelings, or at least pretend to care."

Rachel scoffed. "And coach Sylvester told you this? It doesn't even sound like her."

Quinn laughed this time. "Actually Coach Sylvester told us we should rub it in their faces and call them losers. I figured out normal people actually do things opposite of how she does things if they want people to like them."

"Wait, are you saying people don't like me?"

Quinn sighed. "You're incredible. You're a bit of a jerk Rachel. You're a narcissist. You annoy people with talk about your prowess until they can't stand to be around you. You never learned how to be empathetic so I'm offering to teach you how to get along."

"So I'm just supposed to pretend?"

"Sure, serial killers do it all the time. Just pretend to care, tell people what they want to hear. If you start acting normal it prevents you from actually having to be normal. Think of it as a game. Or better yet a role you have to play. You're Rachel Berry, annoying know it all, but you can be Rachel Berry Superstar in public. And everybody can love her, she can be a star. All you have to do is pretend to care."

"It sounds complicated." Rachel admitted.

"It only does because you don't believe me. But I want you to trust me instead. Do what I say. Don't ask questions, don't think about it, just do it." Quinn paused giving Rachel a moment to let it soak in. "Will you do that? Do you trust me?"

Rachel sat silently for a few minutes then agreed. "Of course I trust you. Okay. I'll do it."

"Good. It's good that you trust me Rachel."

"I do. If we're going to be friends Quinn we have to trust one another. I trust you and I want you to trust me."

Quinn nodded, knowing Rachel couldn't see her through the phone but feeling as if she'd gotten the point across none the less.

"Okay, tell me about your week." Rachel finally said. "Everything start to finish, don't leave anything out."

Week 3

Rachel-NYADA

Rachel stared out her window and considered the invitation again. She'd never been big on party's but then again she'd never been invited to many parties over the years. In Lima she hadn't been popular, she had been a nobody. Here in New York though everybody seemed to like her. Sure it had been rough at first but now she was one of the gang. She'd even go so far as to call herself one of the cool kids. Of course that was all thanks to Quinn's advice. Empathy, go figure.

The phone rang as soon as the minute hand changed and Rachel found herself holding back her excitement as she answered. She'd been looking forward to the call all week and the moment she heard Quinn's voice she let herself relax.

"Hey you." Quinn said casually. Rachel was always amazed at how relaxed the girl was. Nothing seemed to bother her. She was always in complete control, stoic.

"Quinn guess what?"

Quinn laughed. "You took my advice and now you actually managed to make friends."

Rachel fought back a smile. "Yeah actually. I did what you said and pretended to care about people and all of a sudden people love me. I mean I told that girl who beat me how good she was and how I just wanted to put on the best show possible and everybody thought I was great. Well she thinks I'm Eve Harrington but the rest of them don't suspect a thing. I can't believe I didn't know any of this before now. If I had I'd have taken over half the school in Lima."

Rachel had been employing Quinn's empathy trick every chance she got these days. Everybody told her everything. She knew everybody, everybody knew her, and she was always included. Hanging out, dinners, movie nights, she hadn't been left out once.

"I think you're getting the wrong idea Rachel. You're not supposed to be trying to take anything over, You're supposed to be getting people to love you. Start thinking long term. That was my problem. I listened to Coach Sylvester and never thought past high school. By the time I graduated everyone envied me and all the girls wanted to be me but I didn't have any friends. The only friends I had were the ones I made in glee club."

"What about now?" Rachel asked digging for an acknowledgment. Quinn didn't bite.

"I'm doing okay. My roommate doesn't bother me any more. She's afraid of me."

That was the point. She wanted to scare the girl into submission. "I thought that was the point."

"It was," Quinn admitted. "Only I may have laid it on a bit thick. I pretty much told her that there was nothing she could do to me or say to me that was going to break me. I put my Lucy Caboosey picture in a frame on my desk. I told her about getting pregnant at sixteen and how I got kicked out of the house. I told her that even after all that I still almost won prom queen. I told her about the car accident and how I ended up in a wheelchair. Then I told her that if she got in my way I'd turn her into a skid mark. Her friends spread the story and all of a sudden I'm freaking Genghis Kahn. Half the girls are trying to be my minions and the rest steer clear of me."

Strange that it would go THAT far Rachel thought. Quinn could be scary and intimidating but underneath it all she was a pussycat. Sure she did crazy things sometimes but it was all in jest, usually.

"Well I'm sure it'll die down." Rachel said doing her best to be reassuring. "It can't be all bad."

Quinn chuckled. "It's fine I guess. I was just hoping I didn't have to do this here. I wanted to be a normal girl here. I guess it turns out I'm not meant to be a normal girl."

"Quinn." Rachel started.

"It's okay Rachel. I get it. I'm supposed to be this domineering heartless cutthroat bitch. That's my path. I made a decision this week."

Rachel was almost afraid to ask. It didn't sound good whatever it was. "What did you decide?"

"While I'm here I'm going to get a degree in Finance. Afterwards I'm going to get an MBA and when I graduate and get a job I'm going to make a bunch of money. I'm going to be ruthless and cutthroat because it appears that's my path."

"Quinn."

"It's okay Rachel. I've made my peace with it. I'm fine. But for right now I want you to tell me about your week. Tell me what's going on with you."

Rachel hesitated for a moment. Just long enough for Quinn to reiterate her point.

"Don't you dare try and talk me out of it Rachel. It's not an aimless mission anymore like back in high school. I have a destination now. All I need from you is to know me for who I really am. Know me for the girl I want to be instead of for the girl I have to be."

Rachel suddenly felt awful for her friend. "You can be the new person with me. Our friendship can be where we share the new you. You can tell me anything, be anything you want to be with me. I don't care who you are with other people Quinn, all I care about is who you are when you're with me."

Quinn stayed silent for a moment then finally spoke up. "Thank you Rachel, that means a lot to me."

"No problem, just tell me this and we can get back to our normal chatter."

"Okay." Quinn ventured cautiously.

"When can I come to visit you?"

"Are you kidding, I bought train passes for a reason, and you agreed to make the first visit. Tell me when you want to come down and I'll meet you at the train station."

"How about the weekend after next?"

"That sounds great, we'll do a weekend and hang out. It sounds like fun."

Rachel could hear in Quinn's voice that she actually sounded excited. "Good and promise me that we'll use your new status to have some fun. I want to see you torture someone."

Quinn seemed game. "Of course. You'd be surprised the things you can pull off through fear."

"I'm looking forward to seeing first hand. But as for right now I'll tell you all about my week."

"I'm all ears."


	2. Chapter 2

Week 4

Quinn-Yale

Quinn watched with amusement as her roommate tried her best to pretend she was alone in their dorm room. She'd heard through her new minions that the girl had thrown herself at a boy in the quad only to be rebuffed in the most public and humiliating way possible. She'd come to the room red faced and damp eyed, climbed into her bed and pretended to sleep. Quinn hadn't spoken to her but she hadn't had to. The girl was an open book when she was angry. Instead of talking Quinn spent a half hour trying to think of a way to use the information to her advantage but so far hadn't come up with anything. She had all but decided to let it go when the phone rang.

"Hey." Five o'clock had snuck up on her quickly and she'd almost forgotten she was waiting for Rachel's call. The sound of her phone ringing made her heart quicken. Talking to Rachel was the best part of her week.

"Quinn, I've been thinking, when you graduate you should consider moving here. There's a great theatre circuit here."

Quinn hadn't thought much about Drama since she'd decided to get her Finance degree. She went to the classes, did her assignments, but she'd already lost interest. She would have dropped the classes all together had she not been admitted into the Drama program. If she dropped the classes she'd be kicked out of school. Still acting was the last thing on her mind these days.

"Rachel I'm not going to be an actress. I mean I thought I wanted to be an actress but I was wrong."

Rachel chuckled. "Maybe you're wrong about being wrong and you do want to be an actress."

"Maybe you want to marry Finn and move back to Lima and work at Breadstix."

Rachel's laughter stopped and Quinn knew she'd hit a nerve. Rachel hadn't mentioned Finn in a month. They spoke about everything during their phone calls, well everything but Finn.

"Quinn can we not talk about him?"

"Why?" Quinn asked, pressing gently.

"Why, why? Why not just say okay." Rachel countered.

"Rachel you can't ignore this until it goes away. We have to talk about it."

Rachel breathed heavily into the phone. "He's been writing me. Every week. He's in Germany."

Germany? Finn barely made it around Lima without bumping his big head on doorways. She couldn't imagine anybody giving the clumsy oaf a rifle. He'd probably shoot his foot off, or worse some other soldier's. Germany was a great place for him if he was going to be lugging around a gun. She wanted to be as far away from that as possible.

"What does he want?"

Rachel didn't speak and Quinn knew what that meant. She hadn't read the letters.

"You haven't opened them?"

"No. Why? I love Finn, I always will but my life is good without him Quinn. We're doing great without Finn did you ever imagine your life without him?"

Quinn scoffed. Plenty of times. She loved Finn too but in a big brother sort of way. In Lima she often thought about leaving him behind but back then she didn't think she could do much better. He was a good guy, and ogre or not he'd make some girl a great husband one day. Just not her. Or Rachel.

"How I feel isn't the issue Rachel. How do you feel? Do you want to drag his heart through the mud? If not you should just break up with him."

Still no answer.

"You have to at least read the letters Rachel. You have to write him back even if it's to say he shouldn't write anymore."

"Since when did you become such a party pooper?" Rachel asked.

"Look we care about the guy but he's not the right boy for us. For either of us. And who knows maybe he's met some great German girl but isn't making things happen because he's being loyal."

Rachel hummed on the other end of the line. "You really think theres a German girl?" The Bride of Frankenteen. Quinn laughed out loud.

"Maybe," she said still chuckling.

"What's so funny over there?" Rachel asked.

Quinn decided to change the subject. "Roommate's pouting."

Rachel laughed deliciously, they'd spoken at length about Quinn's roommate and had both decided that she didn't get an actual name, for the immediate future she'd be referred to only as roommate. Quinn of course knew the girl's name was Jules but since her talk with Rachel that first week she hadn't uttered the name out loud once.

Jules shifted on her bed, still pretending to sleep.

"What's wrong with her?" Rachel asked.

"She made a fool of herself in the Quad throwing herself at some upper classman. I heard it was totally awful Rachel. Almost as bad as the time Finn dumped me in front of half the Glee club and coach Sylvester kicked me off Cheerio's for getting pregnant."

"Didn't she call you stretch marks for two months?" Rachel added teasingly.

"Oh my God she did call me stretch marks, I'd totally forgotten about that."

Jules laughed in her bed.

"So she's humiliated?" Rachel asked.

"She should be. I mean I'd be humiliated but I would strut around campus like Queen Cleopatra anyway."

"Give her your sunglasses." Rachel teased again.

Quinn bit her lip from shame thinking of the time her and Finn thought they could regain their cool with shades. They'd both been slushied for their trouble. The fact that Rachel was bringing that up made her smile.

"Maybe I should buy her a slushie instead. I'd find that jackass and embarrass the hell out of him. People won't remember what he did to me half as much as they'd remember what I did to him when I was done. He'd become a warning tale when I was done." Quinn said half serious.

Jules shifted again on her bed.

"What did this guy do to her?" Rachel asked.

"Humiliated her. I mean she came off like a bit of a skank Rachel but still, she's not hideous looking. Her dad's rich, really rich. She dresses like she works for an escort service but you can buy new clothes. He's probably gay to tell you the truth. He reminds me of Karofsky, not the bully Karofsky but the clearly overcompensating for something Karofsky. What college guy turns down free sex from a skanky escort girl with deep pockets? I'd dump a slushie on his head and ask him if he's afraid of girls if I was her."

"Quinn." Rachel said suddenly serious. "You can't out people. It's a private thing people have to come to grips with on their own. Remember what happened to Santana?"

"I wouldn't actually out him, I know that's over the line but I'd sure as hell threaten to, he'd be my bitch when I was done with him. He's pretty popular, I bet he could get anybody into all the cool parties. Introduce you to all the cool people. He'd wish he'd just closed his eyes, thought about Brad Pitt, and tapped that when I was done with him."

Rachel laughed out loud. "God I like this Quinn so much. You are like Dr. Evil from Austin Powers."

Quinn's jaw dropped, she wasn't sure if that was a compliment or a slam.

"Dr. Evil, really?"

"Or Dr. Moriarty," Rachel threw out hoping to redeem herself.

"Dr. who?" Quinn asked.

"Oh my God, how in God's name did you get into Yale?"

That was surely a slam although Rachel was laughing now.

"You know what, I don't like this abuse." Quinn said faking offense.

"I'll make it up to you next weekend. Are you still going to meet me at the train? You're roommate's cool with me staying right?"

Quinn nodded. "Of course. Roommate won't mind."

"You haven't told her I'm coming down next weekend?" Rachel asked.

It hadn't exactly skipped Quinn's mind but she hadn't exactly jumped at the chance to share it with Jules either. She was waiting for the right time but that never seemed to happen along.

"Hey roommate, Rachel's coming down next weekend. She's staying with me. With us."

Jules finally turned over and faced her. "Where's she going to sleep?"

Quinn sighed with visible frustration. "With me roommate, what do you think I'm going to make you sleep in the hall?"

"Quinn be nice." Rachel insisted.

"Roommates got thick skin. She has to with all that make up she wears. You should see her eyeliner Rachel she looks like Mimi Bobeck."

Rachel stifled her laugh. "Are you going to tell me about your week or what?"

"Fine." Quinn said still laughing.

Week 5

Rachel/Quinn-Yale

Quinn shifted uncomfortably in her seat as Rachel loaded her bag into the trunk of the car. She'd been looking forward to this visit for weeks but now that it was here she felt like she was going to toss her cookies. She'd been taking deep breaths and counting to ten but it hadn't helped one bit. Now she was feeling like she was going to puke and couldn't wrap her mind around why. She couldn't believe it, it was only Rachel. The same Rachel she'd seen everyday back home. The same Rachel she spoke to every Friday night for hours at a time. The same Rachel she'd been sharing everything in her life with. It made no sense for her to be getting nervous now, she'd known Rachel for years, they were friends.

Rachel climbed into the car and let out a deep breath oblivious to Quinn's struggle. The first thing she'd done when she saw Quinn was wrap her arms around her and embrace her in a big hug. It felt so good Quinn almost sighed. It had been a long time since she'd been held, so long that she couldn't remember the last boy to do so.

"So what first?" Quinn asked. Rachel had been eager to get here but she hadn't talked about doing anything in particular. Quinn hadn't made any plans, Rachel had been in New York, going to parties with her friends and having a normal college experience. Nothing she offered would be any different than what the girl already had in her big city. Just a different party with a different group of people.

"Let's go back to your room so I can lie down for a while. I need a quick nap before we do the Friday night party scene. Saturday is girl's night though. We're staying in."

Quinn smiled, she had missed the bossy take charge side of Rachel's personality. She was always ordering people around and pretending to be in charge. It was funny to watch. All she managed to do was annoy people. Quinn still found it endearing.

"Fine," was all Quinn said still doing her best to control her nervous stomach.

* * *

The second Rachel stepped into Quinn's dorm room she felt the tension in the air. A handsome blonde boy was sitting on the edge of a bed with a skinny dark haired girl. She could hardly call it sitting though because the first thing she noticed was the boy's hand under the girl's shirt. It would have been the sort of thing she'd have killed to be caught doing back home, the drama of it all, rumors, gossip, it would be worth a half a dozen songs at least. But this, this wasn't quite right. The boy's hand was under her shirt but his arm was stiff, awkward. He didn't look as if he wanted it there. Totally staged.

"Oh my God, how embarrassing." Quinn said in a totally unbelievable and robotic voice. The girl snatched the boy's hand by the wrist and pushed it away. "Nice try Liberace, but in the future if you want people to believe you actually like girls you can't look like touching her is grossing you out."

Quinn's roommate cursed under her breath then turned her attention to Rachel. "You must be Quinn's friend Rachel."

Rachel nodded. "In the flesh. You must be her roommate."

"Jules," the girl said sternly.

"Nice to meet you Julia." Rachel said with her most serious face. She refused to acknowledge the girl's name after how she'd treated Quinn that first week of school. Quinn said the girl had been a nightmare at first and even though she'd brought the girl down a peg Quinn was sure the girl would mutiny at the first sign of weakness. Quinn chuckled lightly and Rachel knew she'd done good by her friend.

"It's Jules." The girl said a bit awkwardly.

"Rachel this is roommate's human sacrifice Rock Hudson." Quinn made the comment almost off hand. She was lugging Rachel's overnight bag on her shoulder and pointed at the awkward boy with a wave of her hand. If Rachel hadn't known better she'd have thought Quinn was serious. Her roommate however didn't know better. She had the same look in her eyes that Rachel herself had back in Lima when Quinn tortured her for years. Fear through intimidation.

"Dustin." The boy said correcting her. Rachel could hear the annoyance in his tone. "My name is Dustin. Not Liberace, Not Rock Hudson, not Alexander the Great, not Walt Witman, not Elton John, not Neil Patrick Harris. Dustin."

Rachel wanted to laugh but dared not. Quinn didn't look in his direction at all. Instead she simply nodded.

"Okay, okay, fine. Sorry Anderson Cooper."

Rachel did laugh this time but so did Jules. Dustin was even fighting off a smirk. Quinn still hadn't acknowledged them.

"Anyway," Dustin said suddenly serious. "The Kappa's are having a party tonight. All of you are invited."

Quinn finally turned to face him. "Wow, the Kappa's, nobody scores invites to those parties. It's a good thing I have such a smart roommate who figured out how to get us invited."

Jules smiled a bit but it was short lived. Dustin broke her grin with one sentence. "Wait, haven't you been at the last few parties Quinn?"

"Of course I have, but somebody has to worry about my roommate's feelings seeing as how her boyfriend is a big old closet case."

* * *

Quinn's head began to swim and the second she opened her eyes she felt a warm body pressed against her. It had been so long since she'd been this close to someone, so long since she'd felt flesh pressed against her own. It felt so good she almost let herself forget it was Rachel and not some strong cute boy she was cuddling with.

But it WAS Rachel. She'd climbed into bed last night half in the bag. She was drunker than she'd ever seen her before. Her Rachel, the Lima Rachel, had sworn off alcohol after their Kesha fiasco junior year. This Rachel, college New York Rachel, had no such allusions. She'd downed a shot the second she walked into the frat house and had turned into a completely different person almost instantly. She was actually fun, she was dancing, mingling, flirting with boys, gossiping with girls, she was unrecognizable from the girl Quinn knew.

Rachel had been the life of the party. Half the boys there were showering her with attention but Quinn had kept her close. As wild as she was pretending to be Rachel wasn't an experienced party drinker. Quinn could tell by the way she flitted from person to person, stranger to stranger, that she was much too trusting in these situations. She'd had to confiscate drinks over eager boys had given her at least twice. Rachel was having fun but when she sobered up Quinn would have to give her a lesson on drink safety at parties.

Now, back in her dorm room, tucked in bed, the girl was safely squared away. Quinn had laid her on her side and placed a trash can near the bed in case she needed to puke in the middle of the night and had closed her own eyes to grab some sleep. Some time during the night Rachel had pressed her body against hers. Quinn's response was to press herself close to her, she told herself it was to keep her from rolling over on her back and asphyxiating but she knew deep down that was a lie. It was the closeness she craved. The closeness felt good but Quinn knew it was weird. A few more minutes and she'd turn the girl over on her stomach and go to sleep. Just a few minutes though, a few minutes of peace.

* * *

Rachel woke up with Quinn's arm wrapped around her waist. Not just wrapped around her waist but buried beneath her tee-shirt and resting flush against her abs, her lower abs. Her first instinct was to run, to push away from Quinn and hop the first train back to New York. Uncertainty and doubt rushed to her mind. Her brain jumped into overdrive but her body froze.

Some part of her mind, some deep dark crevice wanted her to run but she couldn't do that. She felt so comfortable here. So safe. Instead of running she nuzzled her body into Quinn's and closed her eyes. It felt so nice to be here with her, so comfortable. She felt safe and she hadn't felt totally safe in a long time. Quinn knew Rachel Berry. The real Rachel Berry and she'd became friends with her anyway. She didn't have to put on a show, she didn't have to be anything other than what she'd always been. Quinn understood her, appreciated her for who she was. She didn't have that with anyone else.

Quinn moaned in her sleep and Rachel made up her mind right then that this was okay. It wasn't weird. If it felt this good it couldn't be weird. Rachel opened her eyes and looked at the clock on the nearby nightstand, 3:18 am. There was plenty more sleep to be had and more than enough time to pull out of Quinn's comforting embrace before morning.

* * *

Quinn woke up with her arm still wrapped around Rachel but this time their feet were intertwined. The first thing she did was curse herself for being so stupid. How in the world had she decided this was a good idea? It was insane. If Rachel woke up and found them this way she'd freak out.

She pulled away from her friend and listened as the girl let out a soft whine. It forced a smile to her face but she refused to let it linger. She climbed over the girl and pulled herself out of the bed. Rachel seemed to notice her absence immediately because she whined again but this time followed it with words.

"Where are you going? Come back to bed."

Quinn could feel herself turning red. What the hell was going on with them? Somehow she'd had the idiotic idea to cuddle with Rachel. She'd foolishly taken advantage of a drunk girl. Now hung over Rachel was complicit in her deception.

"It's okay, go back to sleep."

It was already too late. Rachel was asleep again. Quinn gave herself a stretch and wiped her eyes. She'd slept like a baby last night but it was stolen sleep. Cheap and dirty. It would be fine though, Rachel wouldn't remember when she woke up. No harm done, she just wouldn't bring it up. She nodded with confidence and head towards the door. Her heart felt as if it skipped a beat when she realized she wasn't alone. Jules was wide awake and sitting on her bed reading a worn copy of The Hunger Games. She peered over the top of the paperback novel just long enough to lock eyes with Quinn then went back to reading.

"Morning roommate. Reading the new Curious George book?" It was the only thing she could think to say to the girl. She'd learned back in Lima that if you showed the world fear they pounced like predators. All she could do was strut. It was the one thing she'd learned from Santana Lopez, when in doubt keep strutting.

Jules didn't seem to notice her discomfort. The girl was nose deep in the adventures of Katniss Everdeen and didn't seem to be paying her any attention. Instead of lingering awkwardly Quinn shoved out of the room.

* * *

Rachel watched Quinn fiddle with her cell phone and shook her head with frustration at the girl's silly behavior. Quinn had spent their whole Saturday avoiding Rachel like the plague. At lunch time she'd ushered Rachel in and lingered at her side while Rachel met her new group of minions. She watched every girl interact with her, carefully making sure nobody got too big for themselves and gave her a hard time, it was almost normal. However when they went back to Quinn's dorm she was back to being weird.

"Are you going to pretend like last night didn't happen Quinn?" Rachel finally asked. She'd planned on not bringing last night up but with Quinn being such a baby she couldn't let this linger. Quinn would surely withdraw and things would never be the same between them.

"Nothing happened last night." Quinn said, still fumbling clumsily with her phone.

"Stop this. Right now." Rachel demanded. "Talk to me, tell me what you're thinking."

Quinn tossed her phone carelessly onto her desk and crossed her arms on her chest. "What do you want to hear Rachel? I'm embarrassed okay. Are you going to make me get down on my hands and knees and say I'm sorry?"

What in the heck was she talking about? "What are you talking about?"

Quinn shook her head. "What do you mean what am I talking about? Last night. I took advantage of you."

Rachel started to laugh. "You did not. We slept. We cuddled Quinn. You didn't take advantage of me."

Quinn began to pace the floor and Rachel could see she was struggling with this. It was a harmless thing. A little cuddling between friends, it wasn't a big deal. Last night was the best sleep she'd gotten in months. If it took a bit of cuddling to get that kind of rest then Rachel was all for it. It was harmless enough, Quinn was just being silly.

"It's weird Rachel." She finally said.

Rachel pushed herself off the bed and met Quinn in the center of the room. She wrapped her arms around the girl's shoulders and pulled her close. Quinn struggled against her embrace but Rachel didn't let her go. She wasn't going to let the girl run.

"Stop, stop this. We had a nice night right? Didn't you have fun?" Rachel asked her.

Quinn shrugged against Rachel's embrace. "I guess."

"And we didn't do anything that made you uncomfortable did we?"

"Rachel," Quinn started say.

"Quinn don't do this, don't make this into something it's not. We said we'd be friends right, and as friends this is just a bump in the road. Now last night we cuddled. We didn't have sex, we didn't make out, we cuddled. It's weird I'll give you that, but it's ours. It's our private thing. We don't have to talk about it with anyone. We can cuddle if we want to. Nobody has to know."

"Rachel don't you see how weird this is? It's crazy."

"Tell me you didn't have the best sleep of your life last night." Rachel insisted.

Quinn shrugged. "Yeah, I guess."

"And don't you want to sleep that good again tonight? Just for tonight."

Quinn shrugged again. "I guess."

"Then relax and come to bed. I promise I wont hurt you," Rachel teased. Quinn's face softened but tensed up again when the door crept open and Jules walked in. She was followed by another girl, a skinny blonde Rachel had met last night at the keg party. She pulled away from Quinn slowly careful not to make too big a deal out of it.

"Hi." Jules said awkwardly.

"Roommate." Quinn said turning back into the angry bitch she showed the world.

"I'm not interrupting anything am I?"

Rachel shrugged. "Actually we're just about to go to bed."

Quinn's roommate nodded but her friend stared with interest. Rachel could see a question on the tip of the girl's tongue and dread the opening of the girl's mouth. She knew nothing but bad would come out of it and knowing Quinn's temper and propensity for self preservation Rachel knew she'd freak out. Instead of doing nothing and letting Quinn give the girl a tough time, Rachel intervened and changed the subject.

"Quinn did I tell you that Sunshine Corazon is in New York? She goes to NYU and we ran into one another at a theatre."

Quinn's attention shifted from Jules' friend back to Rachel. "Sunshine is in New York too?"

Jules' friend cut in. "Who's Sunshine, a friend of yours from High school?"

"Rachel's nemesis." Quinn said giving Rachel a smile.

"She is not. She's just some girl we went to school with for a while before she transferred."

Quinn laughed out loud. "Yeah, until she transferred because somebody sent her to a crack house to be raped and murdered by drug dealing gang bangers."

Rachel sneered. "She wasn't in any danger."

Jules friend stared at them open mouthed and wide eyed. Rachel could see the horror in her eyes.

"You sent somebody to a crack house," the girl asked? Jules had turned her attention to the conversation now but Rachel didn't see any emotion in her face. She'd long since stopped being surprised by Quinn's high school stories.

"Yeah, but she was fine," Rachel rebutted.

Quinn continued to laugh. "Sure she was fine, but no thanks to you."

"Why would you do something like that?" Jules finally asked. She seemed almost disgusted by the revelation.

"For Glee club solo's. Broadway isn't going to conquer itself," Rachel said, letting a bit of the old Rachel Berry creep out. She'd been being the new Rachel so much she forgot how freeing it was being honest with people about her obsession with success in New York.

Quinn laughed. "I would have done something a little more subtle but that got your point across I guess."

"Oh yeah, like what?" Rachel asked. "What would you have done?"

Quinn shrugged. "I don't know, befriend her. Get her close then systematically dismantle her life. Turn all her friends against her, make her parents think she's a screw up. Make her start to doubt herself and her sanity. Start to finish, open to close, totally destroy her. I mean if she's in your way threatening your life's mission what else can you do? You gotta protect your own right?"

Rachel glanced at Jules' friend and saw the question gone from her lips. Rachel remembered what Quinn told her she'd said to Jules during that second phone call they shared. "I'll make skid marks of anybody standing in my way."

Quinn smiled. "Anybody?"

Rachel shrugged and walked back over to the bed and laid down. "Maybe. Some people may be safe. Depending on how close we are."

"I feel safer already." Quinn said with a playful smile.

**Does Quinn seem unusually cruel this chapter? I considered it after writing but I thought it was necessary to convey the drastic difference in her personality. When she's being herself she's unsure and almost awkward. When she's being Quinn/Cheerio's Quinn she's a heartless cut throat bitch capable of anything. I think it may be a little over the top (her behavior towards her roommate) but I think it just conveys how scared she is of not being accepted. I think she'd choose fear over lonliness every day of the week. Though that's just one writer's opinion.**


	3. Chapter 3

Week 6

Rachel-NYADA

"Are you kidding me?" Rachel said not able to hold in the anger that had built over the past few minutes. Twenty five minutes late. How dare her call twenty five minutes late.

"Rachel I swear to God that I wasn't making some sort of statement. I had a meeting for this damn play that ran over. It has nothing to do with this weekend."

Rachel stewed on her end of the line. Last Saturday night she and Quinn cuddled for the second night in a row. It was everything it had been that first night. Familiar, comfortable, peaceful. It was like falling asleep in a bed of pillows. Lying down with Quinn pressed protectively around her, wrapped in her arms had been like a fantasy of some kind. The next morning Quinn was weird again and Rachel hadn't the strength to talk her down for the second morning in a row. That had turned out to be a mistake she figured because here they were again, Quinn being weird, Rachel waiting for her call.

"Rachel I swear. I had to stay over, don't be mad at me. I can't handle you being mad at me today."

Something inside Rachel softened. That didn't sound good. "Why, what's going on?"

Quinn sighed. "Church of the Soul." Was all she said.

That didn't mean anything to Rachel. Church of the Soul was a play she'd heard about in her playwriting class, it was supposed to be good but Rachel thought the whole thing was a rip off of Evita. And it didn't even have any music in it. They'd discussed performing it second semester but the whole class shot it down. What was the point of doing a show without music?

"What about it?" Rachel asked with skepticism.

Quinn breathed heavily. "Rosanna. I got picked to play Rosanna."

Rachel's heart skipped a beat. "You got the lead?"

"Yeah, that damn director ignored me when I said I wanted a small role. The asshole gave me the lead."

Rachel didn't see the problem. She was at Yale on a drama scholarship. Getting the lead in the freshman play seemed like a good way to show the administration that she was taking everything seriously. Quinn may have been more interested in getting her finance degree these days but she was a born actress.

"Quinn this is a good thing." Rachel insisted.

"It is not! I don't want to be an actress. Why doesn't anybody listen to me when I tell them that? Why aren't you listening to me?"

Whoa. What was this about? Quinn was practically screaming now and Rachel knew it wasn't about the play. Quinn had been going on about the thing for weeks but it was always in passing. She knew it would be her cross to bear but it didn't seem like a big deal. No, this was something else. This wasn't about Church of the Soul.

"Quinn," Rachel eased out softly. "What's going on? What's wrong?"

Quinn stayed silent for nearly a full minute then finally breathed into the phone. "My dad called today. He says he wants to see me. He's coming down for a visit."

Quinn hadn't seen or spoken to her father since her parent's divorce. Rachel noticed months ago back in Lima that whenever she talked about him it was always in past tense. Like her father DROVE a Mercedes. Or her father WAS an alcoholic. Rachel had finally asked her if the guy had died but Quinn had simply said he'd died to her in the courthouse the day the divorce was finalized.

"What does he want?" Rachel asked.

"I don't know. He kept talking about how proud he was of me. It's like he didn't throw me out on the street like a piece of trash. He said he knew I'd always make something of myself."

Rachel was taken back. Quinn's dad was a complete maniac. He was mean, meaner than anybody she'd ever met. And not Santana Lopez mean, he actually meant the horrible things he said.

"Quinn maybe he." She started to say but Quinn cut her off.

"Am I supposed to forget that he called me a whore when I got pregnant? Is that supposed to have never happened now? Am I supposed to forget that he gave me a quarter and told me to call someone who cares when I told him I didn't have anyplace to go?"

Oh my God. She'd never told her that before. What a jerk. Who does that?

"No." Rachel said gently.

"Now all of a sudden because I got into Yale I'm daddy's little girl again."

Rachel could hear Quinn sniffling on the other end of the phone and knew that her friend was crying. Of course she'd never admit it so Rachel didn't bring it up but it hurt her heart just the same.

"Are you going to be okay?"

"I don't know," Quinn admitted. "I don't want to see him. I don't know what to do."

"Do you need me? I'll take a taxi to the train station and come down right now. I could be there in a few hours."

Quinn laughed. "No. That's not necessary."

"I know it's not but it's what friends do. It's what I'd do for you."

Rachel was already forcing herself to stay on the bed to keep from packing a bag and hitting the road.

"I appreciate it but I'd just cry on your shoulder and I don't do that," she said firmly.

Hearing that almost bummed her out. Having Quinn cry on her shoulder didn't sound that bad. She sounded desperately in need of a hug.

"Stop being so darn proud with me. You can share things with me Quinn. I'm here for you. You don't have to hide."

Quinn didn't bite. She was still protecting herself. Instead she changed the subject.

"Tell me about your week Rachel. Tell me what's new," Quinn said.

It was Rachel's turn to sigh. "I finally read Finn's letters. He loves me and misses me and wishes we were together."

Quinn didn't say anything and Rachel didn't know what else to say, so she told the truth.

"I didn't write him back but I'm going to Sunday."

"Why Sunday? Why not today?"

No reason, stalling.

"Because I need to figure out what I'm going to say," she said covering.

"You're lying." Quinn said with confidence.

"What does it matter why? I don't want to do it until Sunday. Why do you always ask me why? You're supposed to be on my side."

Quinn sniffled. "I am. I'm always going to be on your side but you said it yourself. We're friends and friends have the right and responsibility of questioning each other. Now tell me why you're stalling."

"Fine, because I want to break up with him. I want things to be over."

"Finally. It's about freaking time Rachel. Why did it take you so long to admit that?"

This seemed like a mean question to ask. Why was she pushing this so hard?

"What is it you want to hear Quinn? Why is it you can expect me to be so open and forthcoming with you but you ignore me when things get tough?"

"Wait. Tell me we aren't talking about that. Why do we have to talk about that Rachel. You said it was private. Our own private thing that we DIDN'T have to talk about but you keep wanting to talk about it."

Really she was blaming this on HER. She wasn't the one who acted like they'd done something wrong.

"I'm not the one who wants to run away from it Quinn. You act like it's the worst thing in the world that I like being close to you. You act like what we did is shameful. Tell me why that is. Tell me what I did that made you so uncomfortable last weekend."

Quinn didn't speak and Rachel decided she'd had enough.

"You know what, I can't do this right now. I don't want to fight with you. Maybe we should just speak next week."

Quinn still wasn't talking and Rachel was tired of being the aggressor.

"Fine. I'll call you next weekend." She'd almost hung up the phone when she remembered that Quinn was going through something tough. She couldn't abandon her. "Call me if you need me. Even if it's just to talk. Day or night."

Quinn mumbled a quick goodbye and hung up the phone.

Rachel tossed her phone down on the bed beside her and fought back an angry scream. Quinn could be so frustrating. How could she be such a pain in the butt?

She contemplated the question when her cell chirped a text message. It was from Quinn.

-Rachel I'm sorry I'm being so weird about. Our Thing. It's just I wasn't raised with closeness and affection. I promise you I won't always be weird. Next time. Will there be a next time? Next time I'll be okay, I promise. Don't give up on me. I don't want to lose you.-

And just like that Rachel forgave her. She sent back a text of her own knowing Quinn's admission must have been nearly impossible for her to admit.

-Next time you're coming to New York. It won't be weird, we won't let it get weird. Don't worry so much. It's harmless. And I'll never give up on you.-

Week 7

Quinn-Yale

Quinn answered Rachel's call on the first ring. She'd been waiting all week for this moment, this phone call. The last time they'd spoken things had been awkward and Quinn was anxious to put it behind them and get things back on track. Knowing Rachel she'd pout, Quinn knew she'd have to nip this in the bud right away. Rachel's pouting was known to take on a life of it's own.

"Hello Quinn." Rachel said almost coolly. Or at least that's how it felt.

"Rachel can I just start off by saying that I'm sorry. I'm sorry I was being such a pain last Friday. I was in a mood."

"You can say that again. Anyway it's not a big deal. I'm sorry I was so short with you. I'm supposed to be your friend and I simply hung up on you when you needed me the most. I should be asking for your forgiveness."

That was just like Rachel. No matter what YOU did she always felt as if she played a bigger role. If it wasn't so damn cute it would be frustrating.

"You don't need my forgiveness, I need yours, but for friendship's sake let's say we're equally at fault and we're both sorry it happened."

"Sure, and I am. Sorry it happened I mean. I thought about calling you all week but I didn't know what to say. I wrote you this email but I didn't send it." She laughed. "There's a lot of that going on in my life."

Quinn's breath caught in her throat. Finn. She didn't mail his letter.

"What happened?" Quinn asked.

"I wrote the letter for Finn but I didn't send it."

Quinn knew that was coming. Her first instinct was to pitch a fit, ask questions. Instead she thought back to what Rachel had asked last week. Why did she always ask why? She thought she was helping but maybe she was just being judgmental.

"Okay."

Rachel laughed uncomfortably. "Don't you want to know why?"

"It doesn't matter why. If you didn't sent it you had your reasons."

"I went to this party last weekend, after our fight, and I hooked up with a boy." Rachel blurted the phrase out as if her lips were a broken dam. Quinn could tell by the shame dripping from her tone that she was wracked with guilt about the whole thing.

"Okay."

"Okay? That's all you have to say, okay?" Rachel's voice was carrying now.

"You're a grown up, you can meet a guy if you want."

Rachel sighed. "I don't want to meet a guy. I was upset about our fight."

So she hooked up with a guy? To what? Get back at her? That didn't make any sense.

"It was a fight Rachel. We'll have hundreds, probably thousands knowing us, you can't go out and hook up with some boy to get back at me."

The words were out of her mouth before she realized what she was actually saying. Rachel heard them and pounced.

"I'm not trying to get back at you."

Quinn bit her lip. "I know. I didn't mean it that way."

Rachel seemed to let it go anyway. She didn't want to talk about it anymore. "And I didn't sleep with him. We made out but I went home before things went too far."

"Okay." Quinn said, not sure what else to say.

"Why do you keep saying that? What's wrong with you today?"

"Rachel what am I supposed to say? The last time we talked you told me to stop asking you why?"

She scoffed. "Since when do you listen to me?"

"Alright, what's the boy about? I'm not saying you can't find a new boyfriend but aren't you supposed to break up with Finn first? Technically you're cheating on him and speaking from experience being that girl sucks."

"I don't know. I was fighting with you, and thinking about Finn, and mad at you. I don't know why I did it. I didn't even like that boy. Not like that. Now he keeps calling and I don't know what to say to him. And Finn called me today and I couldn't bring myself to answer the phone. And we were fighting and I couldn't call you to ask what I should do about it. My whole life is a mess Quinn. It's a complete mess."

Quinn felt a twinge of something in her stomach. "Well we're fine right. Me and you are fine."

"I guess." Rachel said glumly.

"No, we're fine. And as for Finn, where are you right now?"

"My room."

"Well get some shoes on, walk down to the desk or to the student center or whatever you have there and drop his letter in the mail box."

Rachel began to protest but Quinn didn't give her a chance to back down. "I don't want to hear it. Don't hurt him Rachel. You don't want to carry that around with you. I think about the way he looked at me when he found out I cheated on him every time I kiss a boy. I see that pain in his face, the tears in his eyes. He doesn't deserve it, not from you."

Quinn could hear Rachel shuffling around in the room and heard the shuffling of papers. "Okay. Stay on the phone with me. Tell me what's going on with you, distract me."

Quinn laughed. "My dad showed up last Sunday."

"Oh my God that's right, what did he want?" Rachel asked. Quinn heard the sound of a door slamming. Rachel had left the room to send her letter to Finn.

"He wanted to be proud of me. He wanted to be my dad again. He took me to lunch and asked me questions about school. He gave me a credit card with a five thousand dollar limit and said he'd pay the bill. He even gave a bank account with like three grand in it. He told me that next year I could get an apartment and he and my mom would work out the details." Quinn laughed. "You know what he didn't do though. He didn't say that he was sorry for what he did to me. He pretended like it never happened."

"I'm sorry Quinn." Rachel said sadly.

"It's okay. It's fine. I learned that I don't want to be that kind of person. I don't want to hide from things anymore." She took a deep breath. "I liked sleeping with you. Cuddling with you. It was the best sleep I've ever gotten. You made me feel safe Rachel. Protected. And I don't care how weird it is, I want to do it again. I want to cuddle with you."

Rachel laughed. "I knew you'd come around. It was just a matter of time."

"Oh really?"

"Sure, I've never been held so tight. You wanted me in your arms whether you wanted to admit it or not."

"So are you going to tell me what the letter says?" Quinn asked.

"Not on the phone. We can talk about it the next time we see one another," Rachel stated firmly.

"I'll be free two weeks from now. We have a break from play rehearsals one weekend a month."

"It's your turn to come visit ME. I want to show you around my city."

"Your city?" Quinn asked.

"Yeah, until you agree to move to New York, MY city."

Quinn laughed. "Fine. I'll come to New York."

Week 8

Rachel-NYADA

Rachel hadn't known what to say to Quinn last week when they'd spoken about her indiscretion. She was sure Quinn would freak out and give her a hard time but the girl had pretty much blown it off. She didn't seem to be at all concerned. Rachel was shocked by this.

When she'd visited Quinn at Yale the girl had been all over her. Whenever she got close to a boy Quinn showed up to either shoo the boy away or scare him off with hard glares. It was uncanny, Quinn had seemed to have some sort of sixth sense. The next day during lunch it was the same thing. She hovered protectively while her friends introduced themselves and chatted.

That was why Rachel didn't understand her non-reaction when she'd told her about the boy. It didn't make sense. One moment she cared and the next she just didn't. She'd even suggested Rachel find another boyfriend. The whole thing was just confusing.

When the phone rang Rachel didn't answer it right away, selfishly taking a few rings to let the girl stew. When she did pick up Quinn didn't seem to be stewing at all. She was laughing and chatting with somebody in the background.

"Hi," Rachel said doing her best casual.

"Okay, shut up, Rachel's on the phone. Roommate you and Sean Hayes keep it down over there."

Sean Hayes. Quinn was still torturing Jules' fake boyfriend Dustin. Rachel was surprised to see him when she'd visited. Quinn said his rejection of Jules had been pretty horrific. The fact that Jules had found a way to bring him to heel reeked of Quinn. Still Rachel was surprised to see the two of them had actually found a way to get along. None of what they were doing made sense but she'd long stopped trying to make sense of people in the closet. Santana's fiasco of a relationship with Karofsky had proved to her anything was possible from somebody trying to hide the truth from the world.

"Hey Rachie. Roommate says hi. And Dustin's here too."

Rachie? Her speech was slurred, so slurred Rachel recognized the reason right away. "Are you drunk?"

"No," Quinn insisted with a giggle.

"Yes you are. It's five o'clock in the afternoon Quinn, why are you drunk?"

Quinn giggled again. "I'm not drunk. I Rachel swear."

"You Rachel swear?" Rachel asked. "You know what, put your roommate on the phone."

"Uh oh. She wants to talk to you roommate." Quinn said laughing maniacally.

"Why?" Rachel heard Jules ask in the background. "I don't want to talk to her." Jules sounded like she was getting defensive.

"Put her on the phone Quinn. Tell her if she doesn't answer me I'm going to get on the train and come down there and me and her can have this conversation face to face."

Quinn got excited. "Yeah, do that. Come down here. I want you to come down here okay."

"Quinn." Rachel began to say.

"No. You should come. I want to see you Rachel."

"Do you? Why?" It was a seriously stupid and inappropriate time to ask that question but Quinn wouldn't know any better.

"Because I miss you. I hate it here. I'm all alone here Rachel. The best part of my week is when I get to talk to you. I think about you all the time. Last night I had this dream about you."

Something crashed and Rachel realized Quinn had dropped the phone. Still, her heart was pounding. A dream, about her? In the background she heard Quinn speaking to her roommate.

"Rachel says if you don't take the phone she's going to come down here and talk to you. Do me a favor and don't take it. I want her to come but don't tell her that. Here, take the phone. Take it and tell her you're not talking to her and I'm going to go wait for her at the train station."

Rachel's heart jumped to her throat. The train station was a ten minute drive from the school at least. Quinn couldn't drive in that condition.

"Quinn. Quinn pick up the phone."

"Hello."

It wasn't Quinn's voice. It was Jules.

"Jules, where's Quinn?"

"She walked.." The girl started to say when Rachel cut her off.

"Go get her. I swear to God if one hair on her head is out of place I'm going to hold you personally responsible."

Jules cursed. "Dustin go get Quinn and drag her back in here."

"But." Rachel heard Dustin say.

"Go, just go right now. Bring her back here." Jules said sternly.

"Dustin's bringing her back." Jules said trying hard to sound reassuring.

"Why is she drunk at five in the afternoon? What happened?"

"I don't know. Something about her dad. He called and she got all upset and got wasted."

Rachel was suddenly glad she was hundreds of miles away. If she was at Yale she'd probably punch Jules in the nose.

"Look, Quinn's really impressionable and emotional when she's drunk. Do not let her do anything stupid. I will come down there if I have to but I have a meeting tomorrow night for school and I'd have to turn around and go right back. I'd use up my spending money for the month and we wouldn't be able to see each other next weekend. And under the circumstances I really need to speak to her at length to help her get things worked out with her father. So do me a favor and look after her please."

Jules sighed. "I guess."

"Don't, I guess, me. Tell me you have this Jules. If you think she's bad when she's ticked off try me. You will not want to see me if you let anything happen to Quinn. Sober her up and make sure she makes it to her rehearsal on time tomorrow."

In the distance Rachel heard Quinn's whiny voice. "But I have to go get Rachel. She's going to come see me."

That darn Russell Fabray. What the hell did he do to her?

"Let me talk to Quinn." Rachel said softening her voice.

Jules didn't hesitate and seemingly passed the phone off to Quinn.

"How far away are you?" Quinn asked.

"Quinn I'm not coming. If I come tonight we won't be able to spend next weekend together. I promise you I'll be yours all weekend."

Quinn grunted with frustration. "But I want to see you. You said you missed me."

Rachel wasn't sure she'd said that. It was true, she just wasn't sure she'd said it. She decided not to split hairs. "Of course I miss you. But one night isn't enough. You owe me two. Two nights together and one full day doing whatever you want to do."

"Ooh. I want to have a picnic in Central Park. Take me on a picnic in Central Park."

Rachel couldn't help but smile. "Fine. Whatever you want. Next weekend we'll have a picnic."

Quinn screamed in excitement. "Yes. I knew you'd do it."

"Are you going to be okay if I hang up?" Rachel asked.

Quinn laughed. "I'm fine. I'm not even drunk."

"Of course not. Just be careful and don't drive anywhere. Promise me you won't drive anywhere."

"What do I get if I promise." Quinn asked playfully.

Rachel could feel her face blushing red. "Stop it. I'll see you next weekend."

"Bye." Quinn said suddenly disinterested. "Hey guess what. Rachel's taking me on a picnic."

Rachel smiled to herself as Quinn's end of the call went dead.


	4. Chapter 4

Week 9

Rachel/Quinn-NYADA

There was something in the air, Rachel could feel it. Something was off about the visit. Quinn seemed okay, then again Quinn always seemed okay, it was what made her Quinn. It was the thing that drew Rachel to her. Her strength and confidence, her ability to compartmentalize things and do what had to be done to succeed. Good or bad. Still, something was off, she was stiff. Almost as if she was working her hardest to be on her best behavior. The whole thing was strange. She was being weird. Again.

Rachel led the way as Quinn lugged her bag up the three flights of stairs to her dorm room. The elevator worked but Rachel had learned the hard way that unless she had her hands full it was always easier, and healthier, to take the stairs. The elevator usually worked but sometimes when you were running late, or if you really had to pee, the darn thing got stuck. She looked over her shoulder and gave Quinn a glance but the girl smiled in response. Rachel had finally had enough of Quinn's odd behavior.

"Okay, what's going on?" She asked as she reached the third floor landing.

"Nothing." Quinn said eagerly. It sounded genuine but Rachel still wasn't quite convinced. She was almost positive Quinn was nervous about their planned cuddle session tonight. It was written all over her face. Of course Quinn would never admit this. She'd said she was okay with it and come heck or high water she'd go through with it. Rachel knew Quinn well, well enough to know that despite her false confidence she was probably scared to death.

"If something's on your mind you should tell me Quinn. I won't get upset."

Quinn shrugged. "Nope, just anxious to see your apartment and meet Wendy."

Rachel's roommate Wendy was a punk rocker who'd weaseled her way into NYADA with a violin. Wendy was actually a guitarist and according to her playing the violin paid the rent while she waited for her band to get a record deal. While Rachel was struggling, sweating her butt off learning dance steps and wracking her brain remembering lines, Wendy was drinking cheap beer, smoking even cheaper cigarettes and writing songs about her ex-boyfriend Spencer who hooked up with her ex-best friend Kelly back at home. Why Quinn would be excited to meet HER was unclear. She did turn out to be a pretty good roommate though, she was never around and beside the mess she made she always minded her own business.

"Well good luck finding her," Rachel said. She sometimes went days without seeing the girl. If she bothered to clean her side of the room it would almost be like living alone.

Quinn smiled politely but Rachel could tell something was still wrong. Instead of pressing the issue she figured she'd find a way to lighten the mood when they got back to her dorm room. Later on tonight she could work on getting Quinn to open up.

"Okay, right this way," Rachel said as she pushed through the door and stepped into the hall. Quinn followed behind quietly but a few steps in Rachel's heart dropped. The door to her room was open. Wendy was home.

"Speak of the Devil." Rachel said awkwardly. This put a crimp in her plans.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing. Wendy's home."

Quinn laughed. "On a Friday night?"

Rachel shrugged. "I usually don't see her on the weekend. It's a shame too because I told her you were coming and she said she'd probably be gone."

"Well it's good I'll finally get to meet her. I'll be able to put a face to the name. All her online photo's are of her guitar."

Rachel had checked the girl's Facebook profile too. Every picture was the same. A photo of a guitar on the steps of the MET with the caption, 'Me at the MET'. A photo of the guitar at Rockefeller Center with the caption, 'Me at Rockefeller center'. Wendy wasn't in any of the photos, only the guitar, which she'd named Yuck. Rachel had thought it weird at first but as she got to know Wendy it started making more sense. She associated herself through her music and her guitar was an extension of herself. It was still crazy but Rachel had grown to appreciate the artistry of it. Wendy even spoke of the guitar as if it were a living breathing thing. In response so had Rachel.

"Quinn forgive me if I have to do the thing. You know, be that other girl, the popular girl. The kids here don't know YOUR Rachel."

Quinn simply nodded. "You don't have to explain it to me. I get it. Remember what you told me, you can be whoever you need to be with everyone else. You just have to be honest about who you are with me. I like MY Rachel."

Rachel fought back a smile. What a cute and sweet thing to say. "Well not as much as I like MY Quinn."

Quinn smiled, doing her best to hide the fact that her face was turning red. Rachel decided to let her off the hook. It was time to be New York Rachel.

She breathed deeply and pushed her door completely open. Wendy wasn't alone. There was a half a dozen people in the room but Rachel didn't blink. She turned on the charm.

* * *

"Get the hell off my bed Heather. You think I want to wake up with your cigarette ashes in my hair? Again." Rachel said quickly.

Rachel's language caught Quinn off guard. She'd never heard Rachel swear before. She'd always been extremely careful to use proper English and perfect diction. Hearing her turn that off like a light switch was unsettling.

"I can't help it, Wendy and Yuck keep their side of the room filthy. I like it over here, it's like Grandma's house over here. I'm staying."

"Don't blame it on Yuck, it's Wendy's who's the slob. Yuck is the perfect roommate until he starts making all his racket." Rachel retorted.

Heather, the girl on Rachel's bed, was a brunette but the tip of her hair was dyed blonde and red. She was outstretched comfortably across Rachel's bed but her attention had shifted to the other side of the room. There was another girl, a dark haired girl with a Mohawk, Wendy, and a girl with half her head shaved. Sitting on the floor were two boys. One with a nose piercing and long blonde dirty hair and another with a buzz cut wearing a dog chain.

"Dog Face. Snow White." Rachel said then looked awkwardly at the boy with the nose piercing. "Pistol Pete."

Nose Ring gave Rachel a glare then turned the glare on Quinn. Strangely, Quinn knew right away who he was. The angry glare had given him away. He was the boy she'd made out with. Quinn wanted to gag. He looked like he had head lice and a bag full of cocaine in his pocket. What was she thinking? Was this the type of guy she liked now? She'd almost prefer she stay with Finn if that was the case. Almost.

"Everybody this is Quinn."

Wendy was off her bed quickly grabbing Heather's arm and giving it a yank. "Sorry Quinn,." Wendy said genuinely apologetic. She gave Heather a strange wide eyed look. Once Heather was back on Wendy's side of the room Wendy extended a hand. "I've heard a lot about you. It's good to finally meet you." Quinn stepped forward and shook her hand politely then retreated back to Rachel's side of the room.

The girl with half a head of hair looked Quinn over closely. "You aren't what I expected."

Quinn's defenses went up. "What did you expect?" What had Rachel said about her?

The girl only shrugged. "I don't know, just, not you."

"Forgive Snow White, she has no manners." Wendy said.

Nose Ring was still staring, glaring actually, and Quinn finally decided she'd had enough. "What's your problem?" She was in full bitch mode now and the mood of the room shifted on the iciness of her words.

"Okay, there it is." Half hair said. "Now I get it."

Before Quinn had a chance to ask her what she was talking about Rachel swung into action. She was tossing Quinn's bag onto the bed and pulling her towards the hallway before Quinn had a chance to let loose the beast.

"Quinn." Rachel began.

"Is that him? Tell me that's not him." Quinn asked.

"Are we going to fight about this? I thought you said it was fine."

Quinn shook her head. "It was, but now it isn't. That's the boy isn't it? The one looking at me like I just kicked his dog."

"Quinn," Rachel began to plead. "Pete isn't a bad guy."

"Whatever." Quinn said. "It's not my business."

Rachel sighed. "So now you're angry. I told you about him. Why was it okay two weeks ago when I told you, but it's not okay now?"

"Because he's fucking glaring at me Rachel. He's looking at me like I burned his house down."

"You want me to ask them to leave so we can talk about it? I will, I'll ask them to leave us alone."

Quinn opened her mouth to say don't bother but it was already too late. The group was already filing out of the room. Rachel didn't say anything but she didn't have to. Wendy was giving the group the third degree.

"One fucking weekend you jackasses. One fucking weekend. I ask you to be cool one fucking weekend. You guys are never coming back. She's been really fucking cool with all my people coming over. She brings one guest and you guys ruin the whole thing."

"I didn't say anything." The kid with the buzz cut said defensively. "I didn't say one word."

"You saw what he was doing. You could have poked him or something," Wendy insisted.

* * *

Quinn was still pouting. The moment she'd seen Pete sitting on her floor Rachel knew this would go bad. At some point it had to go bad didn't it? Quinn had been so cool with everything when they'd spoken about it that on some level she thought the girl didn't care. Now she did. Or maybe she had the whole time.

"Look I'm sorry, I just don't like people giving me the evil eye. I mean HE tried to get YOUR pants off and he has the gall to give ME the evil eye. What the hell did I do to him?"

"Does it bother you that I made out with him?" Rachel asked.

Quinn shrugged. "You can do whatever you want."

"Quinn stop it already. I don't know what you feel but I know you feel something. Stop telling me that I can do what I want. I know I can do what I want. I want to know if it bothers you. It's an honest question."

Quinn gave her a look that told her she was debating her answer. Rachel wanted to scream. Even now she was still playing games. Protecting herself. Rachel still wasn't sure what she was protecting herself from.

"You know if you're going to lie to me, we probably should do this next weekend over the phone, that way I can hang up on you."

"I don't want you to make out with boys." She said softly. "I don't like it but it's not my business to tell you what to do Rachel. And having you ask me how I feel about it just makes it harder because I don't know what you want me to say. What are you asking me?"

"I'm asking you to tell me what you feel," Rachel said.

"I don't know what I feel. All I know is that when I'm with you I feel good. I feel happy and every time I hear your voice my heart skips a beep. Every time I see you I feel like I'm going to throw up I get so nervous."

"Yeah?" Rachel asked.

Quinn shrugged. "Yeah."

"He didn't mean anything to me. It was a thing. A stupid thing. I told him it won't ever happen again. He's being a boy about it, he's mad and angry, but he gets it."

Quinn shook her head. "It's not my business Rachel."

Rachel simply nodded. "It is. It is your business."

* * *

Quinn woke up in the middle of the night with Rachel lying across her body. One of her legs was draped dramatically across Quinn's legs, her head rested comfortably in the crook of Quinn's shoulder, and an arm was pinning her to the mattress. It wasn't quite cuddling but Quinn figured it still counted. It was intimacy. Warmth and comfort and it felt like what she suspected paradise felt like.

Rachel had grabbed onto her sometime during Gone with the Wind and hadn't let go of her. She'd simply reached out and grabbed Quinn's hand and held it tight. Quinn instinctively fought against it. Several times during the movie she'd tried to wrestle her hand away but Rachel wasn't having it. Every time Quinn fought to free herself Rachel dug in tighter. By the end of the movie her head was pressed snugly against Quinn's chest.

Despite her protests it wasn't bad. Somewhere along the way she'd grown comforted by it. The closeness was good, great actually. And Rachel smelled so nice, so sweet. Even now, asleep and grumbling silently about somebody named Carol Channing she was as close to perfect as Quinn had ever seen.

"I'm sorry Rachel. I'm sorry I freaked out earlier. I was jealous. I wanted to admit that to you but I can't bring myself to say it out loud. At least not while you're awake to hear me. I mean it's not like I'm jealous, jealous, It's just that I'm jealous you know. I miss you and I can't wait to see you and I finally make it all the way to New York to spend time with you and I have to come face to face with some booty call of yours. Then he's like a total skuzzball. And then he stares me down and I have to stand around like some chump. I mean back in Lima I'd have broken that kid in half and here in New York I'm just some chump.

"I'd like to say it doesn't matter to me but it does. I mean I like spending time with you and the fact that the skuzzball is invading on our time together sucks. We spent half the night fighting about it and then things got all weird. One moment you're asking me how I feel, then you're telling me it's my business who you date. I mean, cryptic much? Care to explain that? At what point does stuff like that stop being cute and starts being weird? What does it even mean? Does it mean I get veto power over the boys you date? Because if I do, nose ring boy is definitely a veto.

"You know what, forget it, I mean we can talk about that when it's not so damn weird. Which will probably be never but you know how it is, why do now what you can put off until later. Anyway, changing the subject now.

"Okay, now I've been wanting to tell you something that's been really hard for me to say. Last weekend my dad called. He called me up and told me he has something he's been meaning to talk to me about. So of course I thought he was going to apologize for all the crap he's pulled over the years. So I get all excited because I think the asshole really cares about me. Sorry for the bad language, I know you hate it when I swear. Anyway, instead of telling me that he's sorry he tells me he needs a favor. Turns out him coming back into my life has nothing to do with me. He wants to meet roommate's father. My sister told him who he was and now my father wants to sign him as a client for his business. That's why he's hanging around and giving me money. He said it was a signing bonus. He told me that he'll honor his end of our deal if I call him when roommate's dad is coming to town. He said all I'd have to do is call and let him know and my part in it would be done, I'd have fulfilled my contract. He even said that, called it a contract. And you know what I said Rachel. I said sure. I said absolutely dad whatever it's going to take for you to love me again. Afterwards I realized how pathetic I was and got totally hammered. I even missed our phone call. I'm sorry about that by the way, you're being totally cool about it too. After that first week I expected you to yell at me.

"I was afraid to tell you this because I don't want you to judge me. So I won't tell you this while you're awake. I'm sorry I'm keeping secrets but I sort of told you, I mean this kind of counts doesn't it? It's just humiliating, what I've come to. When you look at me you see a girl who can do anything. I like having you see me like that. It makes me feel like there's at least one person on the planet who has faith in me. Even back in Lima you treated me like I was somebody special. I don't want you to think I'm weak. I don't ever want you to think that.

"I'm sorry by the way. I'm sorry about our fight. I'm trying though. I'm trying really hard to be better. I just had to accept that this is about you and me, I like spending time with you. Like this, alone in the dark. With you in my arms. It's confusing sometimes but I like it. Whatever it is, I like it. And I know you do too because you keep wanting to do it. It freaks me out because you keep acting like it's normal but it's totally not. It's totally not. Cuddling with a girl isn't that big a deal but we both know this is different. What we do is different and I'm not sure how, but it just is. And I think you know that."

Quinn yawned and gave a glance at Rachel's digital clock. 4:33am. It was late, much too late to be talking to herself in the dark. She laughed at herself and her behavior. Crazy, she was going crazy. She closed her eyes tugged Rachel tighter to her body and went back to sleep.

* * *

Rachel held her eyes shut tightly as Quinn pulled her close. She'd only been half asleep for the past few minutes and had heard every word of Quinn's long rant to her. Several times during the speech she'd wanted to respond but knew it would be a bad idea. Quinn would be embarrassed and it would make her withdraw even further. Instead she'd kept her eyes tight and listened. She'd even fought back sobs when Quinn admitted why she'd gotten drunk last Friday afternoon. Rachel would be sure to never bring her father up again.

Tomorrow was their only full day and night together and Rachel was going to make it a doozy. Quinn didn't remember their phone call so she'd be surprised by the picnic in Central Park she had planned. At some point she'd have to fess up but she'd wait until after the day was almost over. She'd make sure it was a day to remember. She nuzzled comfortably into Quinn's embrace and let herself fall back to sleep.

* * *

Quinn forced herself back into Rachel's room and did her best to maintain her composure. She'd just had the most fantastic day of her life. Coffee and a Danish in the morning, her favorite. A picnic in Central Park, a dream of hers since she was a little girl. A boat ride, Rachel rowed, not very far off shore but it was the thought that counted.

"I had a wonderful time." Quinn finally admitted. Playing it cool seemed like it would be a serious insult to all the trouble Rachel had gone through. The picnic alone was worth more than Quinn could explain.

"I'm glad. I really wanted today to be special."

There was something in her tone that Quinn didn't quite understand but she ignored it.

"Well it was. I've always wanted to have a picnic in Central Park."

Rachel pushed the dorm door closed and nervously began to fidget. Quinn almost laughed. She'd seen the behavior a dozen times. Boys usually did it after they went out.

"What brought this on Rachel. Why the picnic?"

Rachel shrugged and Quinn knew she was definitely holding something back. "Tell me what it is Rachel. It's okay."

"I know you always dreamed of going on a picnic in Central Park. I wanted to make your dream come true."

Quinn laughed. "Why?"

"What do you mean why? You wanted it so I made it happen. Always with the why Quinn."

"How did you even know I wanted to do that? What are you psychic?"

"You told me. You asked me to take you. Don't you remember?"

Remember what? "When did I tell you this?"

"You asked me to take you last Friday. You were drunk out of your mind so I know you don't remember asking. But I said I would and I did."

"You didn't have to. It's a weird thing to ask a girl to do for you."

Rachel sighed and tossed the picnic basket onto the floor. Quinn watched it tip over and saw it's contents spill all over the floor. Rachel was pissed off. Great, now what had she done?

"Are you mad?" She asked.

"You know what, let's not talk any more. We had a terrific day and I don't want to ruin it with your crazy nonsense. I don't want to fight with you again this weekend. We don't see each other that much and I don't want to spend all of our time together fighting. You wanted it, I made it happen for you and it was great. Why do you want to ruin it now by psychoanalyzing it? Why does it have to mean something, why does it have to define us? We like being together. Why is it this big deal we have to hurdle across?"

"Rachel why are you getting so angry?"

Rachel launched herself across the room and into Quinn's face. "Because you know why I did it, and I'm tired of dancing around it. Now just because you're not ready to deal with it doesn't mean I'm ready to do this dance with you every time you start to get self conscious."

Jesus, Quinn thought to herself. Be a jerk about it why don't you.

"I'm sorry I'm being such a burden."

Rachel rolled her eyes and gave Quinn a sharp poke in the chest. "Just stop it. I said I don't want to fight. We're going out tonight so we're going to need a nap. So hop on in bed and forget this for a while."

"More cuddling?" Quinn said the words as annoying as she could but it wasn't at all convincing. Cuddling was the best part of the whole trip and Rachel knew it.

"You know you want to cuddle with me. Stop being such a baby about it and get in bed already."

* * *

Rachel woke up the next morning with Quinn's arms wrapped around her. Sometime during the night Quinn had taken off her shirt. Rachel could feel the warmth of the girls bare skin pressed against her and knowing the girl was still asleep, clad only in a bra, she allowed herself a peek at her under the blanket.

Quinn had been totally out of control last night. They'd gone to a party and Quinn had gotten totally trashed. As much as Rachel wanted to worry about the reason she couldn't help but be amused. Quinn was such a cute drunk. She'd spent half the night shamelessly flirting with Rachel and the other half trying to pull her onto her lap. Rachel had even let Quinn force her down a few times. She had thought it was cute and couldn't pass up the possibility especially when none of her friends thought it was strange.

"Still peeking? That's cute." Rachel heard someone say from across the room. Wendy. Her heart leapt to her throat. Of course she'd get caught peeking.

"Look." Rachel said softly.

"No, it's cool that you're still peeking. I think it's kind of sweet."

Embarrassing is more like it.

"It's not what it looks like."

"It looks like your peeking at your naked girlfriend under the blanket."

Girlfriend? "She's not my girlfriend."

Wendy laughed. "Are you sure? You two act like a couple. All the phone calls and the fighting. And I thought she was going to rip Pete's head off the other day. He's sorry by the way."

"Apologize to him for me too. I warned you all she was coming though." Rachel said diplomatically.

"Sorry that was my fault. I mentioned it to the guys and they all wanted to see her for themselves. She's pretty. Snow White expected her to be like some softball player. Instead she looks like the prom queen."

"I was the prom queen." Rachel said proudly.

"Of course you were." Wendy said not sounding a bit surprised. "Anyway they wanted to see her. I mean the way you talk about her it's like she's the greatest thing in the world since sliced bread. You're different with her, more demanding. It's weird it's like being around her makes you stronger."

Rachel couldn't doubt that. She'd been playing likeable loveable Rachel for so long she was starting to forget that's not who she was. Her New York friends didn't know the real Rachel. The Rachel Quinn called a pushy and obnoxious know it all.

"She does. She makes me happy."

"So why isn't she your girlfriend? Officially I mean because she pretty much is even if you guys don't actually know it yet."

Rachel didn't know how you would explain what was going on between them. "She and I are complicated."

"Do you want her to be your girlfriend?" Wendy asked.

Rachel had considered a lot of things these past few weeks but that particular question hadn't crossed her mind. She thought about her and Quinn in various stages of friendship, maybe, possibly a bit more. But she'd never actually thought of them as a defined couple.

"I care about Quinn, like I said it's complicated."

"What's complicated about it. Either you want her or you don't."

"Fine, I want her."

Rachel pulled away from Quinn and stared over at Wendy. She was lying down on her bed strumming Yuck with a guitar pick. She was dressed in jeans and a tee-shirt, likely the clothes she was wearing last night. It occurred to Rachel that she'd probably just got home.

"She wants you too. She may not be saying it but she screams pent up rage. If you pushed her just a little bit."

Rachel cut her off. "I can't push her. She's been pushed too much. I want her to want to be with me. I want her to want to scream it from the rooftops."

"She looks pretty comfortable with you to me. You guys looked so cute cuddled up together."

Rachel laughed. "Getting her to agree to this was like pulling teeth. Believe me this is all she's ready for right now. If I pushed, she'd fall off a cliff."

* * *

Quinn felt like crying. Rachel thought she was a coward. A weakling. She knew she shouldn't have been eavesdropping. Brittany had always warned her about that back in Lima. She'd told Quinn if you listened to things people didn't want you to know they'd say things you didn't want to hear. Quinn had taken it as more of the girl's random rambling back then but as usual it turned out to be spot on.

And what did Rachel mean by she wanted her? Did she really want Quinn to be her girlfriend? Was Rachel a lesbian? What about Finn? She'd mentioned he'd called a few days ago and they'd spoken but she'd kept things vague. Quinn assumed it was because she'd backed down and let him weasel his way back into her life but now she wasn't so sure.

Then again this wasn't all Rachel's fault. She'd said some things that first night that she wished she could take back. The whole thing about the skuzzball with the nose ring and her telling Rachel she didn't like it when she dated guys. What was that supposed to say? It was also totally gay for her to get all jealous.

Rachel and Wendy stopped talking and Rachel nuzzled into Quinn's body once again. Quinn wanted to push her away but if she did that then Rachel would know she'd been awake this whole time. She let the girl snuggle up close and kept her eyes shut tight. It wasn't until Rachel leaned into her and whispered into her ear that Quinn finally felt the gravity of what was going on.

"I won't ever push you, and I'll wait for you. For as long as it takes."

If Quinn wasn't so afraid to move she'd have cried.

**I'm not sure how I feel about this chapter. I don't know if it was self doubt or writers block or just plain insecurity but I'm not totally happy with it and feel I could do better. Either way I hope you like it. **


	5. Chapter 5

Week 10

Quinn-Yale

"Why haven't you asked about him? I'm just curious, when did you stop caring?" Quinn hadn't been intending to ask the question but ever since last weekend she'd been tense. Asking the question wasn't nice but it made her feel better. Hopefully it made Rachel feel as uncomfortable as she felt. Finding out that Rachel wanted to be her girlfriend and didn't think Quinn was capable of hearing that had set her on edge. Since then she'd tried and failed to start a half a dozen fights with Rachel but the girl wasn't biting. Not an even a little bit.

"About your father? I stopped caring the moment he hurt you Quinn. If you want to talk about him I'm always willing to listen but I was taught if I didn't have anything nice to say I shouldn't say anything at all."

That was bullshit. Quinn had heard Rachel bad mouth plenty of people tons of times. She'd once told Santana she'd end up working as a stripper. Brittany had confessed in confidence that it had hurt Santana's feelings. Of course Rachel didn't know that. She probably didn't even remember saying it which according to Brittany only made it worse in Santana's eyes because it meant Rachel probably actually meant it.

"You're supposed to care about ME though. I want you to ask me how I'm doing and you haven't even asked how things are going with my dad." Quinn chided.

Rachel was still holding her ground. "I'm sorry. I didn't think you wanted to talk about him. You never have before. But I should be asking anyway, I'm sorry." There was a silent pause on the other end of the phone then Rachel finally spoke up. "What's going on with your father? Tell me everything."

"I shouldn't have to beat it out of you. I don't want to talk about it today." Quinn said firmly. In actuality she didn't want to speak about her father at all. She'd take his money but their relationship was strictly professional from now on. Rachel didn't need to know any of that. If she did she was sure to ask questions and the last thing she wanted to talk about was her father. Rachel got that part right.

"You never told me what Finn said. We were supposed to talk about it but your booty call ruined the whole weekend."

Rachel breathed heavily. That got under her skin but she let it go.

"He called me and told me how awful I was. He says he never wants to speak to me again. He said I was a terrible person for breaking up with him while he's off at war."

"What! He's not off at war, he's in Germany. We aren't at war with Germany Rachel, he's just trying to make you feel sorry for him. He's a big baby."

"I know." Rachel said softly.

Quinn could tell his words had hurt her feelings. "I'm sorry. Don't feel guilty. You're not a terrible person. You're a good person and if you weren't happy then it wasn't fair to you to stay with him.

"I know."

"You deserve to be happy Rachel," Quinn added for emphasis.

"I know." Rachel's answer didn't seem to want to change and now that she'd stopped being selfish she could see that Rachel needed a little TLC.

"Are you okay? Talk to me, tell me what's wrong."

"I could use a hug. I wish you were here to hug me."

"Rachel." Quinn began to plead.

"Quinn Thanksgiving break is coming up in a few weeks. I want to spend time with you."

Quinn's heart began to pound. Why was Rachel doing this? Pushing things like this. Reality hit her, this is exactly what Rachel said she wouldn't do, push things forward. Now here she was pushing. Not only that but Quinn was acting just like Rachel said she would. Like a coward. Well she wasn't about to let this define her. Rachel was wrong, she wasn't a coward. She was Quinn freaking Fabray.

"I want to spend time with you too Rachel."

"So are we going to see one another over break?" Rachel asked. She sounded whiny and tired.

"Of course. We can even drive back to Ohio together if you want." Quinn hadn't intended to go home over break. Her mother wasn't going to cook dinner and was planning on having dinner with her sister Frannie and her husband. She hadn't even asked Quinn what her plans were. The dorms were closing but with her bank account she had plenty of money to get a hotel room. The plan was to check in and hide out for a few days.

"I'm not going back to Ohio. Or at least I didn't plan on it. My dad's are going to Barbados, there's pretty much nothing there for me. I wanted you to come see me before you go."

"What did you plan on doing for the holiday?" Quinn asked.

"Nothing. Hang out here," Rachel said as if it were the most normal thing in the world.

"Rachel why didn't you tell me you didn't have anyplace to go?"

"I have places to go, I just don't want to go there," Rachel admitted.

It was a good excuse. Not really even an excuse Quinn realized. It was blunt and honest, hard nosed facts. She didn't want to spend time with anyone.

"Are you boycotting the holiday or something. I mean it's cool if you are."

Rachel ignored the question. "Are you going to come see me before you leave?"

"I was just going to check into a hotel. They're closing my dorm for a week or so but there's nothing for me to go home to. I was just going to get a room, sleep and eat baloney sandwiches."

Rachel laughed. "Seriously?"

It sounded stupid but it was better than going home and dealing with that craziness. She loved her family but things had been stressed ever since the baby. Her sister was a sweetheart but Quinn usually avoided Frannie if she could help it. It was weird stepping into her house and seeing her cardboard cutout life. It was like her parent's life had been until her father cheated with the tattooed freak.

"Sure, why not?" She admitted.

"Want some company? We can have our own holiday."

It sounded so simple. Our own holiday. The thought of spending a whole week with Rachel alone in a hotel room was nerve wrecking. What would happen if they spent all that time alone? Would Rachel put some kind of move on her?

The thought was thrilling and terrifying. What if she did? Would she be okay with that? Would she be susceptible to something like that? If she were, what exactly did it mean? What would the move be? Kissing? A little groping? Surely nothing more. Would she be okay with a little lost week with Rachel? Maybe?

"Sure. I can use some company?"

Rachel chuckled. "You already sound nervous Quinn."

Did she?

"I'm not nervous, I'm just thinking about it. Where we can go. Maybe we can find a place with a little stove and a fridge and actually have a dinner together."

"That sounds expensive Quinn."

"It's on my dad. He gave me the credit card and he told me to use it. I probably won't use it much anyway so we may as well have some fun with it. Besides, he gave me cash too. I can do half on the card and the other half in cash. He probably won't even notice that."

"Hmm," Rachel hummed. "Maybe I'll buy the food."

All of this seemed a meaningless conversation for now. They had weeks to figure it out. Besides a lot could happen in a week. She could change her mind.

"Maybe."

"What do you mean maybe? Who put you in charge of everything?" Rachel teased.

"It was MY idea so I get to be in charge," Quinn said confidently.

"Fine Ms. Big Shot. You can be in charge. But I'm going to hold you to that. You have to make ALL the decisions. I'm totally going to let you do everything."

Quinn didn't see the problem. "I don't mind making the decisions."

"Well tell me about the play Big Shot. How's life as Rosanna?"

Quinn wanted to scream. That damn play was going to kill her. "Rosanna sucks. I hate her."

Week 11

Rachel-NYADA

Rachel could hear the stress in Quinn's voice when the girl answered the phone. She was anxious, visibly anxious and Quinn never let people see her sweat. It was almost like she had some kind of mode she turned on when things got tough. Quinn mode.

That wasn't the case today. When Quinn answered her phone she was out of breath and she was talking fast. Nervous fast.

"Rachel, Rachel I need to call you back in a little while. Roommate was in an accident."

Rachel's heart leapt to her throat. "Oh no, is she okay?"

"Yeah, she's fine. She just totaled my car. It's totally trashed Rachel. I don't know what to do."

Rachel could hear the stress creeping out of the girl's voice. Car accidents. That would probably always be Quinn's Achilles heel. If she was Supergirl, car accidents were her Kryptonite.

"Quinn, call your father and tell him what happened. Tell him he needs to talk to Jules dad and work out the details."

"What?" Quinn asked, she was totally spaced out.

"Call your father and tell him about your car. Tell him Jules wrecked it and he needs to call her father."

"Oh, okay," Quinn said. Rachel could tell she was still in La-La land but at least she had a plan now.

"Okay I'm going to hang up now Quinn tell me what your doing as soon as I get off the phone."

"It's totally trashed Rachel. You should see how trashed it is. You know she's lucky to be alive. She didn't even get hurt. She had Dustin with her and he hit his head. He's bleeding Rachel. I told him he might have a."

"Quinn," Rachel said cutting her off. "What are you doing?"

"Oh, calling my dad Rachel. I have to call my dad."

"Right, call him and call me back later."

* * *

Rachel waited three hours for Quinn to call back but when her phone rang and she picked up the call her fears were immediately laid to rest. She'd been stressed out for the past few hours worried to death about her friend. Quinn pretended to be tough but Rachel knew she actually wasn't. She was fragile and a bit emotionally beaten down. She'd bragged to all her Yale friends about how she was some unstoppable machine but in reality her trials had seriously damaged her psyche and self esteem.

"Hey, Rachel." Quinn said calmly. Rachel couldn't see how she could be so calm. She was freaked out the last time they'd spoken. Her mind was all over the place.

"Hey, is everything okay? How's Dustin's head?" Rachel asked.

"Empty," Quinn said evenly.

Rachel rolled her eyes. She's totally fine now it seems.

"Why? What happened?"

"He tried to agree to a breathalyzer. My dad told me to tell the cops he wants a lawyer. He called Jules dad and Dustin's dad. Did you know Dustin's dad played in the NFL? He's in the Hall of Fame."

Rachel didn't know that but she didn't watch baseball. "I didn't know that. But your dad took care of everything?"

"Yeah, he said it's fine. Jules dad is sending a lawyer to take care of it. Nobody got hurt, just my car got trashed. Dad says the insurance won't cover it."

"If Dustin was drinking probably not." Rachel didn't know much about car insurance but she was pretty sure drinking and driving probably negated your coverage. If not, it should.

"It'll be fine. Dad says I'll get a new car. Jules dad is going to replace it. Thing is I'm not sure I want it. I don't really care for driving anymore."

That was totally understandable. After an accident as bad as Quinn's most people would have sworn off driving forever. When Quinn picked her up from the train station Rachel noticed she'd gone so far as to lock her cell phone in the glove box. It was strange the sort of things trauma did to your mind. Quinn was totally freaked out just a few hours ago. Sure she was fine now but the sight of a mangled car probably took her back to her own accident and threw her mind into chaos. Rachel realized she'd probably had some form of PTSD that she hadn't dealt with. Knowing Quinn she probably never would.

"Are you okay?" Rachel asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I wasn't in the accident."

"I know but you seemed pretty excited when we spoke a while ago. You were pretty wound up. Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah," Quinn said sternly.

"Okay, because when we see each other I think it's time for you to talk to me about the accident. We've never spoken about it. Not really."

Quinn seemed to get defensive. "Why do you want to talk about that? It's in the past."

"It's NOT in the past. It's in the back of your mind. You were really freaked out."

"So. What difference does it make? I'm fine now. Why does it matter?" Quinn said.

"What do you mean why does it matter? I care about you and I want you to tell me about it. And stop asking me WHY all the darn time. Just do what I say."

"Stop telling me what to do," Quinn insisted. "Why don't you mind your own business?"

"No. You are my business. Do you understand that? Your happiness, your safety, your welfare, is my business and I will not stop telling you what to do. Especially if your health is concerned."

"Why do you always do this, boss me around all the time?" Quinn asked.

"Because I'm an annoying know it all, you said so yourself."

Quinn suddenly started to laugh. Rachel listened to her and the sound of Quinn's joyful chuckles made all her anger and frustration melt away. It was impossible to stay angry at her when she laughed like that.

"I'm sorry about calling you that Rachel. You know I didn't mean it." Quinn said.

"You did, but you meant it in the nicest possible way."

Quinn's infectious laughter caught on and Rachel started to laugh herself.

"Of course I did. I need more bossy know it alls in my life. The girls here always look to me for the answers. Like I know anything. I'm some girl from Ohio. Most of them have been all around the world already. I've been to New York, Chicago and Yale."

"It's okay. You're going to conquer the world one day," Rachel said reassuringly. If anybody could it was Quinn Fabray.

"Oh, so talk to me about Wendy's audition." Quinn said eagerly.

Wendy and her band had recently played for a major record executive at some Punk club in the city. Wendy had said things went well but she'd heard nothing from the record exec. Snow White had even gotten so discouraged she'd talked about quitting. Rachel had given them all a pep talk, a la Mr. Schue, and it seemed to do the trick. At least temporarily.

"It didn't go well but they're going to make a video now. Dog Face has a friend who's a filmmaker and he's got all these short stories. They're thinking of making one into a video for one of their songs, Two Faced Bitch."

Quinn laughed again. "Two faced bitch? That's the name of the song?"

"It's actually pretty good if you like Punk."

"I don't." Quinn said still laughing.

"Besides all this drama talk to me, tell me what's going on. How is your master plan to get a business degree and take over the world going?" Rachel asked.

"Slow. I love my business classes. The economics class is hard though. The teacher used to work for the government. He's like totally into this stuff. It's almost sad, I don't think he has a life."

Rachel laughed. "Who does?"

Week 12

Quinn-Yale

The first thing Quinn heard when she stepped into her room was Rachel singing. At first she thought it was her imagination Rachel was back in New York. She knew that because the girl was going to call her in a few minutes and they were going to sit down for their weekly talk. Yet it was clearly Rachel. Nobody sounded like Rachel. When she opened her door she heard Rachel's voice singing 'Don't rain on my Parade', but it wasn't live. It was on the internet.

"Holy crap is she talented." Jules said to the group of girls standing around when Quinn stepped inside the dorm room.

"That's the girl Quinn's with?" One of the girls asked. "The one that came down that time?"

"Rachel. She goes to NYADA, it's like Broadway college." Jules said. For some reason they hadn't seen Quinn step into the room. Their attention was focused on the computer.

"She doesn't need it." One of the girls said just as Rachel's video image began belting out the last high note.

"God don't let her hear you say that. She's got a big enough ego already." Quinn said as she stepped inside and slid her books onto her desk. Her sudden appearance seemed to change the mood of the room but none of the girls said anything. It was Jules who spoke up.

"Oh, hey Quinn we're just looking at some of your old high school performances. One of the guys at the Kappa dorm said he recognized Rachel from the internet and then he played us some of her old stuff. She's really talented but was a bit of a dork in high school huh?"

Something inside Quinn got angry but she didn't let it show. "She was the Prom Queen."

"I thought you said you were the Prom Queen." One of Jules friends said snidely.

"I said I almost won Prom Queen, but I lost to Rachel. Somebody needs to work on her listening skills."

Jules gave her friend a glance relaying that Quinn was telling the truth. The girl quickly turned her attention back to the computer and to let her off the hook Jules clicked another video. Santana's strong voice began to sing Valerie. "Who's this girl?"

Instead of pointing at Santana, who Quinn expected them to be interested in, she pointed at Brittany.

"That's Brittany." Quinn said curious why they were interested.

"She's a good dancer." Jules said. "I bet all the boys loved her."

Quinn laughed at the irony of that. Of course all the boys had literally loved Brittany, every last one of them according to rumor. Brittany on the other hand simply killed time until Santana came around.

"She's dating Santana, the girl who's singing the song." Quinn admitted.

"Those girls are lesbians?" One of the girls asked.

"Brittany isn't, but Santana is. Brittany's bi. And this guy is gay too." She said pointing Kurt out to the crowd. None of them looked remotely surprised which made her want to laugh.

"You guys had a lot of gay kids at your high school," Jules said.

"Not really. Just in the Glee club. It is show choir after all."

Someone clicked on a video of the Troubletones singing Candyman. "Why aren't you in these videos Quinn. It looks like all the other girls but you and Rachel are there."

Where do I start Quinn thought. "Well the woman who ran this group banned me from participating. And Rachel stayed away for other reasons."

Someone laughed. "Why did you get banned?"

"Yeah, how do you get banned from high school show choir," Jules asked.

"Blackmail, extortion. I'm sure I did some other stuff I simply just forgot about. Not to mention I tried to get her arrested for statutory rape so I can get Beth back."

"The woman who ran this group adopted your daughter?"

Quinn nodded. "Yeah. She's also Rachel's mother. Her birth mother I mean, Rachel's adopted too."

Quinn let the awkward vibe persist and did her best to seem casual as she sifted through a stack of papers on her desk. For emphasis she began to sing along to the song. She was one verse in when her phone rang.

"Is that the Troubletones?" Rachel asked after Quinn said a quick hello.

"Yeah, roommate's watching some of the old video's you uploaded onto your video account."

"Really." Rachel asked suddenly excited.

"Yeah."

"Let me talk to her." Rachel insisted.

Quinn hesitated just for a moment. She found herself wondering what they had to talk about. Were they going to be chatting now? Becoming BFF's? She let the jealousy fester for a second or two then finally gave in. She handed the phone to her roommate who listened before her mouth opened into a wide O. Quinn watched her face grow a mischievous smile.

"Oh, I'm all over that." The girl said as she punched a few keys on the computer. Quinn watched curiously as Jules face went from surprise to amusement. When she started the next video Quinn's worst nightmares came true. Her own voice. Time of my life, her duet with Sam.

"Rachel!" Quinn screamed.

Quinn watched in horror as her roommate and her friends laughed and sang along to the song. When Jules handed her back the phone Rachel was laughing on the other end.

"I'm sorry I couldn't help myself."

"Why would you do that to me?" Quinn said doing her best to hide her embarrassment.

"No lift? What a rip off Quinn." One of the girls said laughing.

"Oh my God I'm never going to forgive you for this Rachel."

Rachel was still laughing when Jules spoke up in the background. "Hey tell her about Thanksgiving."

"What about Thanksgiving?" Rachel asked her laughter finally fading. "I thought we had plans to spend it together."

"We are, we will. It's just Jules didn't have anywhere to go and she asked if she could come home with me. Turns out our fathers are best buddies now. Anyway I told her about our plans and she and Dustin asked to come. I said okay but now a few more people are going to show up."

"Quinn!" Rachel said sternly. "You didn't. How many people?"

"I swear it wasn't my idea. It was Dustin. He invited half the school. I found a place with a stove, and a fridge like we wanted. It's like a little apartment Rachel, it's supposed to be really nice. But now kids have rented out the whole floor. Somebody is catering it, it's like a giant inappropriate Thanksgiving party."

Quinn heard Rachel sigh. "If I wanted a party I'd have gone home to Grandma Berry's."

"I know. I didn't want it either but now everybody's parents know about it and they've all okayed it. Even my dad said it was okay. Seems he doesn't want to be the only parent who causes a stink. He didn't bother asking whether or not I asked for his permission. Which I didn't."

Rachel breathed heavily. "No roommates. I don't want to share a room with anyone but you."

"Fine. That's okay with me. Jules is bunking up with Dustin. His dad is working some football game anyway. And everybody else is shacking up too." Quinn tried to look on the bright side. "Hey at least you don't have to cook."

"I wanted to cook for you." Rachel admitted.

Darn, another one blown. "Well we can still do it, we can still have our own private dinner."

"No, it's not a big deal."

"Rachel I'll make it up to you." Quinn began to plead.

"It's fine. We wanted to see one another that's the important thing right?"

The words were right but Quinn knew better. Rachel was clearly disappointed. But on the other hand there wasn't much she could do. She hadn't anticipated Jules inviting herself along and she really hadn't expected Dustin to blab it to half the school. She expected most of them to have better things to do than hang out with kids they hung out with all the time. The opposite turned out to be true, they jumped at the chance.

Quinn's Thanksgiving bash was all anybody was talking about. Girls and guys she'd never even spoken to were coming up to her telling her how excited they were. The whole thing had gotten dangerously out of hand. Before she knew what was going on she was the most popular freshman on campus. Jules was basking in the glow of her roommate's sudden fame. Her drunken car crash with Dustin was gossip fodder for days and word spread that Quinn had to call her dad to fix things.

In reality her father hadn't done a darn thing, she'd told everyone that but nobody seemed to care. She'd told them all that her dad wasn't anybody important, just some guy shacking up with some tattooed freak in Lima Ohio. Still nobody cared. Dustin spread the story about how her father saved him from implicating himself in a DUI and ruining his future and the legend grew from there. Suddenly she was somebody important. Just like back in Ohio, rumor and reputation ruled everything. Now her party only seemed to cement that fact. Trying to explain to everyone it wasn't a party seemed futile, they'd still show up, they'd still party.

Of course it wasn't all bad. Her father had told her she'd more than satisfied her end of their contract. The word contract was like fingers on a chalkboard but Quinn let it go. Whatever her father was hoping to get out of roommate's father he'd been successful. Dustin's dad was also on board. Quinn wanted to know what was going on but she decided against asking. Frannie had sent a text telling her that dad had even gotten a huge promotion at his job because of it. Assistant General Managing Director to something or the other. He was in seventh heaven.

"I swear every night will be just me and you. No parties, no groups, just the two of us."

Rachel seemed to finally accept the situation. "Well you have to socialize some. These are your peers, but I want four nights alone, just the two of us. Just me and you watching a movie, or doing something else boring and quiet."

That sounded more than fair Quinn realized. "Done."

Across the room Quinn heard herself singing I say a little prayer for you. She wasn't even sure how that one ended up recorded. It was an audition. Her Brittany and Santana looking for a way to weasel their way onto the Glee club so they can find a way to sabotage it. Who had taped it and downloaded it onto the internet was a mystery.

"God those skirts are short." Somebody said.

Quinn laughed. Everybody said that about the Cheerio's skirts.

"Hey I know that team. You guys had that crazy coach right?" Somebody asked. "Sue something."

"Sue Sylvester. The Cheerio's are seven time National Champions. I was on two of those teams until I got kicked off for getting knocked up. They lost that year by the way. Although Coach Sylvester did retire my Pom Poms when I graduated. It's on the Cheerio's web site if you want to look it up," Quinn said looking at the girl who'd questioned her Prom Queen story earlier. She was doing her best to sound arrogant and the girl shyly looked back to the computer screen.

"God, how can I stay mad at you when you act so sweet." Rachel said sarcastically through the phone.

"Oh come on you know you love me," Quinn teased.

Rachel didn't speak for the longest time and Quinn finally allowed herself to hear what she'd just said. Rachel cleared her throat nervously and said the five words that sent Quinn's heart into flutter.

"Yeah, I think I do."

It took Quinn nearly two full minutes to catch her breath.


	6. Chapter 6

Week 13

Rachel/Quinn-Connecticut

Rachel was teasing her. Quinn was positive about that. She was walking around their hotel room in her flimsy nightie, bending over things, leaning, bouncing around. Quinn knew she was definitely doing it on purpose. Who put on a nightgown at 7:45pm?

"Quinn aren't you going to sit down and watch the movie with me? You promised me four days and I'm claiming one of them right now."

Rachel was going to milk her promise for all it was worth. It's not like she minded it, spending time with her wasn't a chore, she actually enjoyed it, but something about Rachel's not so subtle attempts to what, seduce her, made her uncomfortable. Something about the whole thing made it feel a bit tawdry. Either that or Quinn was just being the coward that Rachel thought she was.

"I know what I promised." Quinn said firmly.

Rachel glared at her in response and pushed herself off the sofa. Quinn tried her best to ignore her as she closed the distance between them. Rachel met her as Quinn sat comfortably, or uncomfortably now that Rachel was stalking her like a big game hunter, in one of the room's chairs. Rachel leaned into her and pressed her face against hers. Quinn could feel the girl's breath gently brushing her face and her heartbeat quickened.

"Well come over here and sit down with me." The words were almost a whisper but they still echoed through Quinn's mind as if she'd used a bullhorn.

Yeah sure, Quinn thought. Come sit down with her while she leaned over her breathing minty smelling breath on her and flashing her breasts in her face. Brilliant idea Quinn not at all a problem.

"Sure," she said like a moron. Totally impractical but damn if she didn't really want to be next to her right now.

Rachel lingered near her face, her warm breath breathing against her skin driving her mad. "We don't have to watch a movie, I'm sure we can find other things to do."

Was she flirting again? She was sure of it now. "Rachel." Quinn started to say but Rachel didn't let her finish the thought. She was pulling away and walking back towards the sofa. A DVD was already on the menu screen, a movie Rachel talked about constantly that Quinn had somehow never seen was waiting to be enjoyed. An affair to remember.

"Fine, we can watch DVD's. I'm content if you are."

Quinn watched as Rachel sat down on the sofa and crossed her legs. Her nightie was insanely small, insanely small and completely revealing and inappropriate. Despite this Quinn couldn't help but stare, Rachel looked so good in it.

"Come on, come keep me company. I'm in the mood for love Quinn."

More flirting? Quinn was sure that's what she was doing but she wasn't sure what Rachel wanted her to do about it. Respond? Suffer? This wasn't going to be another one of those weekends. Rachel wasn't going to walk away from it thinking she was a coward again. If she wanted to play this game Quinn was up to the challenge.

* * *

Rachel woke up with her face pressed against Quinn's warm chest. She could hear her heart beating slowly and rhythmically in her rib cage, could hear the slow and steady breaths of Quinn's peaceful sleep. She bit her bottom lip and forced her eyes closed and for the first time since she'd stepped foot in this room less than twenty four hours ago she assessed her situation.

Quinn had laid out the red carpet last night. Rachel wasn't quite sure what to expect when she showed up at the hotel. It was nice, really nice, everything Quinn said it was. They had total privacy. A kitchenette of their own complete with stove, fridge and a small table. A sofa and a flat screen TV. And most importantly they had a bathroom that wasn't shared with half a floor of students and a large king sized bed. It was everything Quinn promised it would be and more. It was more than a hotel room. It was a suite, the whole hotel was full of them. A little apartment of their own to share.

Quinn moved beneath Rachel's head and offered a soft moan. Like the last time they'd slept in the same bed Quinn had taken off her shirt. However unlike the last time there was nobody here to catch her if she took a peek. And she had taken a peek. She'd also stroked the girl's soft fit belly but had restrained herself from outright fondling the girl in her sleep.

She was fighting off the urge to fondle her when someone knocked on the door. Rachel wasn't sure what time it was but she was sure it was early. They hadn't stayed up late so she was up bright and early as usual. Quinn was always a bit of a sleepy head on the weekends and usually slept in. They'd settled in early last night, everyone had actually, and watched 'An Affair to Remember' on DVD.

Rachel pulled herself off Quinn's body and climbed out of bed. Her cell phone laid comfortably on the night stand but she'd turned the thing off last night after being bombarded with calls from friends about why she wasn't going to make it home for Thanksgiving. They were pressing the issue but she ignored them all and dread the moment she turned it back on reentered reality. Instead of grabbing her phone she walked over to Quinn's side of the bed, laughing at the irony that they'd slept together so many times now that they each had a 'side', and picked her phone up off the nightstand. 8:21am. Early. Much too early for visitors.

Rachel grumbled as she walked to the door and asked who it was. "It's Carol."

Carol, Rachel thought, which one was that? It was a chore keeping track of Quinn's new friends. They'd descended on the business hotel like a pack of rowdy teenagers. Music blaring in the parking lot, beer being passed around, marijuana being smoked. When Quinn guided them into the parking lot in her new SUV it was packed with upscale cars and sports cars. The trappings of wealth Quinn called it. After seeing the spectacle Rachel was sure the whole week was ruined. It wasn't until things settled down that she realized the boys were all forced outside by their girlfriends who wanted to keep the partying to a minimum. Jules it seems had forgotten to mention that everyone who jumped at the chance to attend the party had understood it was strictly a plus one affair. Everyone had brought a girlfriend or boyfriend.

Rachel also found out that Quinn's friends had shown up En masse to make reservations and in return had taken up the whole fifth floor of the hotel. Their were fourteen couples in all, but sixteen rooms. So as not to be disturbed by some grumpy senior citizens, someone had rented the extra two rooms also. Rachel was astonished someone would actually spend that kind of money for simple privacy but Quinn had reminded her these kids grew up in a different world than they did in Lima. While she and Rachel had budgeted and spread the charges across several forms of payments so as not to draw attention to it, most of these kids hadn't thought twice about the financial toll it was going to take.

When Rachel pulled the door open she felt a gust of wind and instantly remembered she was in her nightie. The girl, Carol, a skinny brunette who along with her boyfriend had taken on a leadership role in the week's festivities offered Rachel a friendly smile. She'd glanced down at Rachel's nightie but politely offered no comment.

"Hey, sorry to drag you out of bed," Carol said never letting her eyes leave Rachel's face.

"It's okay, I was awake."

"Is Quinn awake. We're trying to get settled up with the caterer so we're collecting from everybody."

Rachel wanted to scream. They'd hired a caterer? What was the point of getting the kitchens if they were going to hire a caterer?

"Yeah?" She forced herself to ask hiding her annoyance.

"Yeah, she'll do breakfast, lunch, and dinner every day, with one big feast on Thanksgiving. It's two hundred dollars each."

Rachel almost swallowed her tongue. Two hundred dollars each? That would blow her whole spending budget for next month. She had to go wake up Quinn.

"Hold on, let me go wake her up." Rachel said smiling politely.

Quinn moaned when Rachel shook her. "What? It's early, come back to bed already." Quinn said her mind foggy with sleep.

"Quinn, Carol's here, she needs money for food." Rachel said trying hard to hold the girl's attention.

"There's money in my purse. If it's not enough put it on the credit card and we'll figure it out later. I want to sleep Rachel."

Rachel knew Quinn wasn't thinking straight. Quinn didn't make rash decisions. The smart move was to visit an ATM, awake Quinn would have done this. Sleepy Quinn wasn't interested in hearing the details.

"Are you sure you don't want to go to the ATM?" Rachel coaxed.

"Pay her and come back to bed Rachel." Quinn moaned again.

Rachel sighed and dug Quinn's credit card out of her purse. She wanted to ignore Quinn's request but everybody was probably waiting on her. Against her better judgment she handed the card over to Carol. Quinn would surely regret this in a few hours but Rachel saw no other choice. She was unreasonable when she was tired and sleepy.

"Here you go, put it on this."

Carol didn't blink. She took the card shoved it in her back pocket and checked something off a clipboard. "I'll get it back to her when she wakes up. Thanks Rachel, I guess I'll leave you two to it."

Rachel would have laughed had her stomach not started to roll.

* * *

Quinn found Rachel with the other girls in one of the spare rooms talking about makeup. Rachel had woken up first but had stayed in bed with Quinn for about an hour watching TV before she finally got her day started. The next time Quinn seen her she was sweaty and sweet smelling, the hotel had a gym with an elliptical machine which Rachel had taken full advantage of. She showered and dressed then disappeared amongst the floor leaving Quinn alone.

Quinn realized when she emerged from the room that she was last one up. She'd been exhausted. She'd spent half her night trying hard to tease Rachel and sometime during the night she'd taken off her tank top. Rachel was on her best behavior most of the night but Quinn knew it was only because she'd leveled the playing field with her antics. Hopefully it was enough to tame Rachel into submission.

Rachel smiled at her when she walked into the room and stood up almost immediately. "Are you hungry? I put some breakfast away for you before the boys tore through it."

Breakfast sounded terrific. "Sure." She answered wondering why Rachel was being so nice. Was it some new plan of hers to break her down?

"Have a seat," Rachel said. Some of the girls were lingering in the living room chatting and watching Keeping up with the Kardashians. Others were in the bedroom and bathroom going through various morning beauty rituals. The whole room was a girl's paradise. The tables were sprawled with makeup, lotions, and hair care products. Every mirror held curling irons and straighteners and at least two girls getting ready for the day.

Quinn sat at the empty kitchen table, a small round thing that barely sat two people comfortably. Rachel moved around in the kitchen for minute or two, the sound of a microwave buzzing then binging filled the room. Quinn watched as Rachel fussed over her, getting everything just so with food and silverware before sitting it all down in front of her and leaving the room. Quinn sat almost dumbfounded by the behavior before Rachel returned with coffee. She finally smiled and walked back to the sofa. All eyes seemed to be watching her, not just Quinn. Rachel shrugged seemingly not bothered by the attention.

"What can I say, I'm from the Midwest. It's how we do things there. There's only one captain of a ship. I have no problem being her first mate."

Quinn would have laughed had she not seen that Rachel was using her New York actress face. She was lying, acting. Something must be wrong. She'd be sure to figure it out later.

* * *

"Rachel what were you thinking?" Quinn practically yelled. Well it would have been a yell if she weren't whispering it so her peers couldn't hear them.

"I tried to wake you Quinn. It was four hundred dollars. I don't have that kind of money lying around. And these kids don't even think about that kind of money." Rachel had spent all morning with the other girls and had learned that every last one of them was the daughter of a one percenter. Two hundred dollars was pocket change to them.

"I know but now my dad is calling me Rachel. He must have got a call from the credit card company."

Rachel knew that was to be expected but refused to accept full blame. She had tried to talk some sense into her, that should at least count for something. "Quinn it's only four hundred dollars. Your dad shouldn't be that angry."

Quinn shook her head. "Try thirty two hundred. Some of the kids had cash on them, others didn't and it was so early in the morning that nobody wanted to get out of bed. Only twelve people had the cash on them Rachel. There's twenty eight of us. The other sixteen people went on my credit card. My dad is going to kill me."

If Rachel swore she would have cursed. Quinn's father was an unreasonable man, he'd be angry at this. Rachel wanted to say something consoling but couldn't think of anything. It was strictly a losing battle.

"I'm sorry Quinn," she finally said softly. It was her only move, apologize.

Quinn did something totally unexpected however. She leaned into Rachel and embraced her in a hug. A long comforting hug that sent Rachel's pulse racing. "It's okay. I forgive you. I'll deal with my dad. Off topic I like your Midwestern girl routine."

Rachel gave her a glare. "Are you guilting me into waiting on you hand and foot all week?"

Quinn shook her head. "Hey it was YOUR idea. I'm just trying to keep YOU from looking like a liar, and if that means I have to get served all my meals by you so be it. I'll take one for the team."

Rachel gave her a playful shove and a gentle laugh. "I'm sure you'll suffer through it with clinched teeth."

* * *

Rachel woke up that next morning with Quinn's hand under her shirt. Last night she'd traded in her sexy nightie for tiny shorts and a loose fitting tee-shirt. It was more subtle but it lured Quinn into a false sense of security. The first night she'd turned the tables on her by beating Rachel at her own game, so last night Rachel switched gears. She spent half the night acting as if nothing were happening then as soon as Quinn was relaxed and calm she ever so gently brushed up against her and began to flirt. Something must have clicked in Quinn's head after that because she'd stayed super tense for the rest of the night. Point Rachel.

Rachel wasn't sure why but Quinn loved her stomach. She often caught the girl staring at it, and in the middle of the night she'd stroke it gently. She'd began looking for a way to use this to her advantage, to soften Quinn up to the idea of more happening between them but couldn't quite figure it out. Yet.

"Quinn are you awake?" Rachel asked.

Quinn moaned something unintelligible. She was half there. Awake enough to know what was going on but not so awake that she'd absolutely remember what was happening.

Rachel slid her own hand up under her shirt and met Quinn's hand resting upon her abdomen. She stroked the back of the girl's hand closing her eyes and doing her best to memorize every vein, knuckle and dimple. The girl's hand tensed but immediately relaxed again under Rachel's touch. Rachel let their fingers mingle and intertwine gently then opened her eyes.

"Quinn." She called out once again. Still nothing, not even a moan this time.

Rachel gripped the girl's hand and slid it slowly up her abdomen towards her chest. "Quinn." She tried again. Silence. She held her breath as both their hands lightly brushed against her breast. Quinn still didn't move or speak and Rachel found herself laughing. This was surely an insane thing to do. She pulled Quinn's hand away from her chest and rested it back on her abs. She closed her eyes and went back to sleep.

* * *

Quinn thought again about the dream as she ate dinner that night. Last night she'd dreamt she'd felt Rachel up. The dream didn't freak her out, she'd woken up that morning feeling great. She was in a great mood and it had lasted all day. It was strange that a dream could make a person so happy, she understood it was her subconscious mind trying to tell her something although she wasn't sure what.

She knew Rachel wanted to be her girlfriend. Quinn knew she liked spending time with her, they had fun together. Had excellent sleep and cuddled together as if their bodies were made for one another. She wasn't sure what the dream was about but she knew she wasn't at all against the idea of feeling Rachel up in real life. The realization had come from out of nowhere but it was a reality. Rachel wanted to be her girlfriend and she wasn't sure how she felt about that but she knew she wasn't angry, or disgusted by it. She wanted to feel her up, wanted to hold her in her arms. That wasn't quite saying she wanted them to be going out, still it meant something, she just wasn't sure what.

* * *

Rachel cashed in her second night of peace, quiet and alone time with Quinn on the third night. The mood amongst the other kids was subdued. There was a lot less partying than Rachel expected it to be. Their were almost thirty kids around and almost all of them had worked themselves into a little routine. The boys spent most of their days playing video games drinking beer and smoking pot. The girls chatted and occasionally went out to the mall or on some other excursion. Rachel sometimes tagged along, other times she stayed at the hotel.

Earlier tonight Rachel had talked Quinn into taking her to see a movie. Quinn was in an unusually good mood. Her talk with her father had gone strangely well. Once she'd explained to him truthfully what was going on he eagerly told her to forget about the money. He said she should spread the word that he was picking up the tab for the catering. Quinn simply rolled her eyes and agreed. The kids who hadn't paid had tried to give her money anyway and Quinn had simply put it all in an envelope and labeled it 'emergency cash'. It was being used to tip maids, buy beer and pay for any other incidentals that came up. It had also financed Rachel and Quinn's movie night.

Rachel hadn't seen much of Jules and Dustin. Their fake romance had taken on a complete life of it's own. They'd had a big blow up over Dustin's constant need to have sex and he'd been banished to the bedroom of the spare room the boys used to play their endless video games. Quinn had laughed at the display and had even played peacemaker between the two. By the time their fake fight had been resolved all the girls were amazed at Jules ability to reign in the rowdy Dustin. His (false) reputation as a womanizer had preceded him and Rachel found herself wondering if the boy would ever simply come out of the closet.

The group didn't seem to actually mind each other's peculiar behaviors. One of the couples insisted on having sex with their hotel door room open. Another fought constantly over who was drinking too much. Both had spent nearly the entire time drunk so far. A girl named Elise that Rachel had met briefly at Yale had actually flew in a girl from California named Jenna. Jenna seemed to know almost all the kids from New York and when she'd changed out of her pleated black pants, silk shirt, and cardigan sweater and put on blue jeans, a bandanna and a New York Yankee's jersey none of the group batted an eye. Her and Elise were as affectionate as most of the other couples. The fact that they were lesbians wasn't mentioned at all. Nobody had mentioned Quinn and Rachel's situation either. It was just another thing. Rachel assumed they thought the two of them were actually a couple but nobody asked and neither her or Quinn tried to explain.

Quinn was setting the small round table with plates and silverware when Rachel turned the TV to the music only channel. She found some soft jazz station that Quinn immediately began to sway to and softened the volume just enough so it wouldn't becoming overbearing.

"You ready to eat?" Quinn asked.

Rachel shrugged. "Sure."

They were halfway through dinner when someone knocked on the door. Quinn gave Rachel a curious look and Rachel offered a shrug. Quinn was at the door and pulling it open when a boy Rachel only knew as Rick nearly pushed his way in.

"Rick I'm in the middle of something." Quinn said firmly. Rick shot Rachel a look of polite apology but didn't leave.

"Sorry Quinn, Rachel, I know you guys are doing another one of your romantic nights in but this couldn't wait."

Rachel's breath caught in her throat. Something was going wrong. It had to be.

Quinn didn't back down. "And it absolutely can't wait? Rachel and I don't get to see each other that much and I promised her a night in with no distractions."

Rick looked at Rachel with sympathy. "I'm sorry Rachel this is totally me." He turned his attention back to Quinn. "The thing you helped me with yesterday." He said.

Rachel had no idea what he was talking about but clearly Quinn did. "Yeah, tell me you didn't screw it up."

"No, just the opposite. My dad saw my name come across the AP wire. He just ran a piece about it on Evening America. A six minute segment about how the bill is going to revolutionize American small business. Your congressman friend, it's going to make him a star."

Rachel was still lost. Congressman friend? And Evening America was one of the most popular cable news shows in the country and it ran on the most powerful cable news channel in the World. Wicks News Network. She suddenly found herself wondering who Rick's father was. The host of Evening America was Mitchell Grant. Was Rick his son?

"That's great Rick. I'm excited for you. I knew all you needed to do was prove yourself to your father. Once he sees you're a serious journalist it's impossible for him not to give you that internship. This is going to erase the stink of nepotism. He can hold it up to anyone who ever questions it."

"Did your dad not want you being a reporter Rick?" Rachel asked.

Rich shook his head. "No he wanted me in the front office. My brother is set to inherit the big chair but he wanted me at his side. Family business, birthright. That whole thing."

Quinn shrugged. "If you're going to inherit a news channel it's only fitting that one of the Wick kids know how to break a news story Rick. You make the case to your father that if you actually learn the news business from the ground up it'll balance out your brother's business sense. Yin and Yang. This year an internship in print media, next year a television internship."

Rachel watched in awe as Quinn handled her friend as if he were some school project she were working on. A few well placed words, encouragement and direction. This boy Rick seemed to have followed her advice and things had gone extremely well for him. And the legend of Quinn Fabray grew.

"I just wanted to let you know, so next time you talk to your congressman friend tell him this was good. Traction on his bill will immediately start to pick up steam."

Quinn nodded as if none of it made a bit of difference to her. Rachel had always admired her ability to look unfazed by everything. "I will, now goodnight Rick. I have promises to keep."

She gave Rick a light shove towards the door and a flash of her winning smile then shut the door behind him. Once Rick was gone she walked over to the small coffee table near the sofa and picked up her cell phone.

"Dammit," she said to herself. "I let my phone die." She began to shake her head. "Stupid Quinn, very stupid." She gave Rachel a look. "I know we're eating dinner but can I check my messages with your phone."

Rachel nodded. Her phone had been turned off for days. "Go ahead, it's in the bedroom."

Quinn disappeared into the hotel suite's bedroom and Rachel heard her fumbling around. "I got Rick an interview with Burt Hummell the other day. He needed something that would get his father's attention so we came up with an idea for a story about the most important bill for middle America that nobody is talking about. We used Mr. Hummell's bill because I knew Kurt and he agreed to give Rick a few minutes for an interview. He used Yale's resources to get it out on the AP Wire and his dad apparently saw it." She fumbled around some more. "Hey Rachel, your mailbox is full of messages."

"Ignore them." Rachel said eagerly. She wasn't about to let questions about her and Finn ruin her week.

"Wow." Quinn said a few minutes later as she stepped out of the bedroom. "Everybody is looking for you Rachel. Finn, Tina, Kurt, even Santana."

Rachel wasn't interested in talking to any of them. She'd spent a few minutes with her fathers on the phone a few hours ago and knew they were both okay. Nothing any of her friends wanted could be that pressing and important. Questions about her and Finn most likely.

"I spoke to Kurt earlier and he asked me if I'd spoken to you and I lied because we hadn't talked about what we were going to tell people. But it seems everybody has worked themselves up into a frenzy looking for you. They think you're sulking alone in New York crying over Finn."

"It's nothing." Rachel said doing her best Quinn impersonation.

"Are you going to tell me what's going on?" Quinn asked.

"Can't we just eat. We can talk about this tomorrow."

Quinn gave her a skeptical glance but didn't press the issue. She never pressed the issue. She'd bring it up later and try to ease it out of her but Rachel knew she'd bought herself some time. She'd just have to keep Quinn distracted tonight. That shouldn't be too difficult she figured.

* * *

Quinn woke the next day with Rachel's head lying across her chest. She'd dressed in another of her sexy nightgowns again, and once again resorted to bending, leaning and teasing. Quinn didn't have the heart to fight back with her own sexy shenanigans. She'd simply gave in and let Rachel have her fun.

She wasn't sure what Rachel's ultimate objective was but last night she'd given Quinn a playful eyeful while she changed out of her clothes. She was in her flimsy nightie by 8:30. A sheer black thing that almost showed nipple and barely covered her ass cheeks. Rachel hadn't bothered to go to the bathroom to change last night. One minute they'd been talking about Wendy's music video for her song 'Two faced bitch', and the next Rachel was getting naked and changing her clothes. She hadn't lost eye contact with Quinn while she did so and Quinn was sure she'd seen the girl smile.

Quinn had returned the favor, although she hadn't gone topless like Rachel had, she'd changed in full sight of the girl and waited for her to say or do something that would explain this sudden forward progress in their friendship. She considered simply asking Rachel what was going on but her pride wouldn't let her. Any questions would surely come off as cowardice and Quinn wasn't about to do that to herself.

"Rachel," Quinn called out lightly. "Rachel wake up."

Rachel squirmed on top of her but didn't wake up. A wisp of her hair spread gently across Quinn's face and she brushed it off lightly catching sight of Rachel's sleeping face. She was smiling this morning. Whatever she was dreaming about was making her happy and Quinn wondered what sort of things Rachel dreamed of. Broadway? Stardom? Her?

She ran a hand through the girl's hair and Rachel moaned beneath her. "Hmm," she said greedily. "I like that."

Eager to satisfy Quinn continued, lightly brushing her hand across the girl's scalp. Rachel's hand was draped across Quinn's chest, resting at her side. Her arm suddenly came to life and began to slowly stroke Quinn's rib cage.

Quinn stroked Rachel's hair and closed her eyes as the girl's hand explored her own body. Rachel's touch was soft, gentle and teasing. She toyed with Quinn's side for a moment before lightly brushing the side of her breasts.

Quinn held her breath as Rachel's hand lingered near her breast then slowly pulled away. Quinn finally let out a breath but it caught again when the girl's hand slipped beneath her tee-shirt.

"Open your eyes." She heard Rachel say and it was only then that she realized Rachel wasn't asleep. She was awake, fully aware of what she was doing, of where this was going.

Quinn did as she was told and Rachel looked her right in the eyes. "Don't freak out," Rachel demanded.

"Why would I freak out?" Quinn said doing her best to stay strong. She was on the verge of freaking out. What was going on?

"Because." Rachel said leaning into her and pressing their lips together. Quinn didn't realize it but she welcomed the kiss like a kid welcomed December 25th. When she closed her eyes again she saw fireworks in her head.

**I was planning on making Thanksgiving one chapter but it would have been extremely long so I split it up into two. I know it ends on a cliffhanger of sorts but I couldn't help myself. I've always wanted to do it and the time hasn't been right until now. So forgive me while I scratch something off my bucket list and enjoy this chapter because more is coming soon! Thanks for reading and reviewing. **


	7. Chapter 7

Week 13

Rachel/Quinn Connecticut

Quinn looked like she was going to run for the hills but Rachel wouldn't let her give up. She wasn't going to start at the beginning. Not now. Not after this, it was impossible to let things go back to the way they were before.

Quinn's eyes were closed tight and Rachel ran her hand down the side of Quinn's rib cage. She shuddered when Rachel's hand brushed against her breast. Rachel let her hand linger and watched as Quinn held her breath. She pulled her hand away and slipped it underneath Quinn's tee-shirt and Quinn once again held her breath.

"Open your eyes." Rachel demanded. Quinn did as she was told, her eyes crept open slowly, her face stone cold and emotionless. Rachel knew that face. She looked empty but Rachel knew better, she was terrified. "Don't freak out." She said softly.

"Why would I freak out?" Quinn said with all the ease of someone doing her best not to scream bloody murder.

"Because," was all Rachel said before leaning into her and pressing their lips together.

Quinn didn't fight it, she met Rachel's kiss with an enthusiasm Rachel didn't expect. Their lips held together tightly before Quinn ran her tongue slowly across her lips. Rachel accepted her tongue and let her hand explore the girls body.

Rachel could feel her shudder under her touch but Quinn's tongue didn't back down an inch. Rachel inched her hand slowly up Quinn's abdomen stopping inches away from her breasts. Quinn responded by sliding both her hands onto Rachel's hips and slipping them beneath her nightgown.

Rachel could feel her heart beginning to pound. She'd initiated this but for some reason she wasn't expecting to be successful. Quinn was so nervous, so guarded. Rachel didn't expect her to be receptive. The fact that she'd slipped her hands underneath her nightgown was like finding out there was a tooth fairy. Both terrifying and exhilarating.

Rachel decided that if Quinn was open to this she may as well go for the gusto. She pulled away from her severing their kiss with one smooth motion. Quinn's mouth chased hers as she pulled away and Rachel gave her a smile. Quinn's eyes were still closed so she didn't see it. Rachel was thankful, she knew anything may send the girl over the edge and she was weary her next move was going to be hard enough for her to process.

She straddled Quinn's hips and bit the corner of her lip. Quinn's eyes opened up slowly just in time to see her pull the nightgown over her head. She looked more confused now than scared. Almost as if she were debating something in her head. Rachel decided to beat her to it.

"Relax. It's just me and you here. Quinn and Rachel. Nobody else. Only us."

Quinn breathed hard. "Me and you," she said, her voice shakier than Rachel had ever heard it.

Rachel nodded. "Me and you." She leaned into her and kissed her again. This time Rachel didn't hold back. This time when she slipped her hand beneath Quinn's shirt she let herself enjoy the moment.

* * *

Quinn wasn't sure what to think about this morning. On one hand it was spectacular. Gentle, passionate, tender, and caring all while being totally hot and steamy. On the other hand it was like being told that something was true that you never envisioned about yourself. She'd known that Rachel wanted to be her girlfriend but until now she'd never really considered what it meant. It was a real thing, alive, breathing, rooting around in her heart. She didn't expect that. She didn't expect to feel it afterwards.

Rachel was asleep. Snoring lightly and sprawled across Quinn's chest like a blanket. Quinn wasn't experienced in sex, her only real foray into the area had been with Puck and that had ended up in disaster. There had been a few other close encounters, with Finn, again with Puck, but she'd been careful since that first time not to fall victim to hormones. It hadn't been too difficult, she'd had no real desire for it until this morning. This morning something had happened to her and everything she'd been taught about sex, love and sexuality had gone out the window. This morning she'd finally felt like she'd lost her virginity.

The fact that Rachel was a girl hadn't entered into her mind until right this moment. And the thoughts it brought out in her didn't involve shame and disgust, they brought fear and worry. Fear that her father would find out. Fear that people back at home who knew the old Quinn would somehow see her differently. She had to keep the two separate. Rachel wouldn't mind, she'd said it herself. This was about them. It was nobody else's business.

* * *

Rachel ducked out of the hotel room expecting stares and whispers. Instead she got indifference. Nobody cared that it was nearly three in the afternoon and her and Quinn were just now making their daily public appearance. It was almost as if they hadn't been missed. It wasn't until she grabbed the room's door handle that she saw the sign hanging from the door knob.

'Do Not Disturb, Sex in Progress!' Her face went red with shame. Did they know, she wondered? Surely not? How could they unless they'd heard some unfortunate noises coming from the room. She brushed the question off and walked down the hallway her head high. She wasn't about to let herself be ashamed. What happened between her and Quinn this morning was beautiful. Two doors down she saw another of the signs, then another, and another. She finally laughed at the absurdity of her thoughts. Of course they didn't know.

When she found her way to the girls room she found a crowd of girls sitting around playing cards. Jules who Rachel hadn't seen much of was front and center today, her smile wide and mischievous. She clearly had noticed Rachel and Quinn's absence today.

"There she is. I didn't think you two would ever come up for air."

The girls here had been extremely accepting and Rachel saw no need to lie. She also saw no need to share either. "Some private moments should best stay private," was all she could manage. Short sweet and to the point. It also seemed to get the desired effect.

"God I remember when Jenna and I used to hide out in the room all day. These days all she does is complain about how we have to hide." Elise said.

Rachel liked Elise even if she was the epitome of Wasp-y upper class. She was short and stuffy, almost demure in her behavior and painfully polite. The last thing Rachel thought of when she saw her was lesbian. She was too well mannered, too perfect. Jenna, her girlfriend, although neither of them had actually stated that it was the case and Rachel hadn't asked, was the same way. At least she was at first. She showed up looking every bit as stuffy and upper class as Elise but once she relaxed, her perfect hair was pulled into a ponytail and her expensive clothes were replaced with old jeans and jerseys, sweats and tee-shirts. She was a closet butch according to Quinn.

"Would your parents be really upset if they found out?" Rachel asked.

One of the girls laughed and Elise gave her a sorrowful look. "My parents don't let me anywhere near Jenna anymore. Her parents made her go all the way Stanford to keep us apart, and that's just because they suspected something was going on. My parents would disown me. Or Grandfather would disown them if they didn't. They don't actually know that we're here together. If they found out they'd freak."

"I'm sorry." Rachel said.

"I hear Quinn's father doesn't like you either. What about your parents. Do they like her?"

Rachel shrugged. "I have two dads, one African-American, one Jewish, both gay. They wouldn't care about this in the least. Quinn on the other hand they'd have a problem with. She sort of made my life hell back in high school. She wasn't very nice to me and they'd remember how many times I came home upset because of her. She tortured me."

Elise laughed. "That's because she liked you. And her dad is a religious nut. I guess she probably didn't know how to process it so she made you miserable."

"Our friend Santana says the same thing. She always told me Quinn had the hots for me. She's a lesbian and has excellent Gay-dar." Rachel said.

"That girl from the video the boys were drooling over you mean?" One of the girls asked.

Jules nodded. "That's her, they don't believe she's gay."

"Wait, what videos?" Somebody in the crowd asked.

"Oh, you haven't heard Rachel sing? She's good."

Rachel scoffed. "Please, I'm much more than simply good. Allow me to demonstrate."

"Uh, oh," Jules said from across the room. "Quinn warned me about this."

* * *

Quinn was nearly positive she heard Rachel singing in the distance. It wasn't the type of thing you got confused about, hearing her sing. There wasn't anything like it in the world. Now she was somewhere in the hotel belting out a rendition of what sounded like Lady Gaga's Telephone.

"Quinn is that your girl singing?" Jeff asked. Jeff and his girlfriend Carol were responsible for the catering bill that Quinn's father had ended up paying. He was a nice guy, an upper classman that the boys naturally gravitated to. Jeff was a type-A personality whose mother was the CEO of some major family owned Investment Bank. He was the big man on campus. Most of the boys didn't make a move without seeking his counsel.

"Sounds like it." Quinn said.

"She's good," he said and Quinn could tell he wasn't just being polite.

"She is, she's very good. But don't ever tell her that because the cool girl you know disappears and the Diva comes out. She'll talk all day about how great she is if you let her."

Dustin who had been hiding in the corner drinking beer nodded in agreement. "Quinn's right. She will. She once spent twenty minutes telling me about Celine Dion's hairdresser."

Quinn had no idea what he was talking about but decided not to contradict him. "She's great but you need to understand the Diva is it's own entity. When she's in star mode their is no turning it off."

"Oh, hey Quinn, I talked to the guys about putting that business plan together. I still want to know if you're in."

There was always some business venture being put together. Quinn had no real use for most of it. She only understood half the ideas the boys pitched and the others went over her head completely. Even the ones she understood were out of her field of expertise.

"Ollie I don't know anything about computers. I have nothing to offer, nothing to bring to the table."

Ollie shrugged. "People listen to you. You can sort of handle the meetings and stuff. I still need somebody to write the code, maybe you can interview some guys for us."

Quinn didn't see the point but why not. What else was she doing. "Fine but with my luck you'll all get Zuckerberg'd and somebody will steal your idea and the whole thing will end up in court."

A few of the boys laughed but Quinn was serious. She didn't know the first thing about any of this and the fact that these kids would turn to her instead of their parent's lawyers was unsettling.

"What do you think Jeff, want to take a few meetings for these guys?"

Jeff shrugged. "Why not. I know some computer guys."

"Just don't blame us if this doesn't work out. I got enough problems figuring out how I'm going to squeeze in a Finance degree with all this damn acting."

"Don't worry it won't interfere," Ollie said. Quinn doubted that very much but only smiled.

* * *

Rachel was nervous about going to bed but when she saw Quinn step into the room in a pair of silk pajama's that made her look like a female Hugh Hefner she couldn't help but laugh. She looked so cute and was doing her best to be casual Rachel suddenly couldn't remember what her nerves were about.

"What?" Quinn asked seeing her laughing and immediately becoming self conscious.

"You look cute is all."

Quinn shrugged and walked into the hotel's small bedroom and sat on the edge of the bed. "Did you see that thing the boys put on the door."

"The do not disturb? I saw it, it was cute."

Quinn didn't look like she agreed but she let it go. "Are we together. Or are we just together here?"

She blurted the question out as if it were some huge thing that had been hanging over their heads for days. In reality Rachel had never NOT considered them together. She knew they weren't together but she knew they weren't separate either. It was like being asked if you were tired at bedtime. You probably were, most likely were, but maybe not in certain situations, but still probably yes.

"Do you not want us to be together?" Rachel asked. She'd long since given up trying to decipher how THIS Quinn would react to anything. Old Quinn, Lima Quinn, was predictable. She'd do what was best for Quinn, damn the consequences. This Quinn, college Quinn, at least Rachel's private version, was shaky and on edge most of the time. She'd act erratically and make emotional decisions. She often picked fights for attention and pouted when she didn't get her way.

"I want us to be together. I mean after this morning I want to clarify. I mean I only want to be doing stuff like that with somebody who I'm together with. I just think it's important that we talk about it but if you think we shouldn't I guess we don't have to."

Rachel climbed across the bed to meet Quinn on the edge. She wrapped two comforting arms around her. "We're together. We were always together in my mind. I was just worried you'd freak out because of this morning. I mean we went from zero to a hundred in a few minutes. Things moved really fast and I wanted to make sure you were okay with that."

"You know somewhere along the way I must have," she started to say before her cell phone began to ring. She sighed losing her train of thought as she pushed herself off the bed and snatched her cell off the nightstand.

"Rachel this is Santana. Are you ever going to answer your phone? They'll just keep calling."

Rachel just shrugged. "Tomorrow. I'll talk to them tomorrow."

Quinn nodded with a smirk. "Sure you will."

Rachel watched her push a button and put the phone up to her ear.

"Santana hey." She shot Rachel an annoyed glance sure to make a mean face as she did so. "No I haven't spoken to Rachel. I'm sure she's fine though."

* * *

Quinn's heart was still pounding when Rachel pulled away from her neck. She wasn't sure when she'd become such a sucker for making out but these past few days she couldn't get enough of it. Before today she had always considered it a chore, something she had to do to keep a boy interested. Her overall annoyance with it had made it easy for her to shut them down once things got too hot and heavy. Ever since yesterday morning though something had changed.

Rachel seemed to be okay with things the way they were playing themselves out. She didn't seem bothered by the fact that they'd had sex yesterday. She was behaving as if it was the most natural thing in the world. As if what they'd done was a natural progression in their relationship.

Quinn wasn't so comfortable. It was weird, the more she thought about what happened between them the weirder it was. She wasn't sure when she'd began thinking about Rachel that way. She'd always thought the girl was pretty. Cute and cuddly with the perfect mixture of attitude and talent. She hadn't blinked at any of the changes and forward progress they'd made.

"Is this okay with you. What we're doing?"

Quinn's face scrunched. Could she not tell she was enjoying herself?

"Of course, it's great. I never knew sex was supposed to be like this. Truthfully I never knew what the big deal was before."

Rachel only smiled, her face showing admiration and humor. "I don't mean the sex. I mean are you okay with the idea of us having sex. Emotionally, morally." Rachel pulled away from her and laid down beside her on the bed.

It was the sort of question Quinn didn't expect. Not now, not after what they'd done. It seemed like an afterthought. If she wasn't okay with it, morally or otherwise it was much too late now.

"I'm fine Rachel. I mean I'm not ready to go walking hand in hand down the street but I'm okay with what we did. What we're doing." She sighed. "I'm more than okay with it. I don't know what it means, the fact that I am but I feel good about it. About us."

Rachel reached over and stroked the side of Quinn's face. "I'm sorry about the way I was acting. I didn't want to pressure you into this. I just figured I had to show you that you did feel this way about me. You seemed to be on the fence. My plan was to get you all worked up and make you realize it. I didn't intend for us to have sex."

Quinn shrugged. "It's okay that we did. I like making love to you Rachel. I just wish we could skip all the weird stuff."

"What weird stuff?"

"This conversation. People finding out. It's all weird Rachel."

"Nobody here cares that we're together Quinn. It's like it's not an issue. I expected judgment and scorn but your friends are very accepting."

"It's not here that I'm worried about Rachel. Sooner or later we're going to have to leave this place and go back to the real world. What happens then? What happens with us when people start asking questions."

"Like who?" Rachel asked.

"I don't know, our friends back home."

"Quinn our friends back home, are back home. They don't know what we're doing. They don't even know that we see each other or talk as much as we do."

"I know, it's just maybe we should come up with some sort of plan. You know what we're going to tell people. When Santana called last night she said everybody was looking for you and that you weren't calling anybody back. When I told her that you were probably fine she didn't accept it. They're seriously worried about you Rachel. And it's freaking me out that you won't tell me why."

Rachel laughed lightly. "Always with the why. It has nothing to do with me and you Quinn. I promise. It won't effect us. It's about Finn. Now do me a favor."

She waited silently for her to agree. Quinn hated agreeing to things without the details but the silence in the room was deafening. Rachel wasn't going to budge.

"Fine, I'll do you a favor. Now tell me what's going on."

"Don't push this. This stuff going on at home, I'll handle it. Just trust me. Trust me that it's not about us. Let me take care of it."

Quinn was annoyed that she'd agreed to it almost instantly.

* * *

Rachel watched Quinn leave the room and forced herself to act. Her refusal to simply deal with her problems was beginning to cause a strain on her relationship with Quinn. Quinn had agreed to leave the whole thing alone but Rachel didn't actually believe she would for a second. She was inquisitive by nature, stubborn and proud. She wouldn't leave it alone. Rachel had to end it herself.

She waited a few minutes for Quinn to disappear into the hall and fished her cell out of her purse. Bringing it to life was like being slapped in the face. Over sixty missed calls, text messages too numerous to count.

Not answering her phone was stupid. Childish even. Still she didn't see any other way to handle it at the time. It was either ignore it all or answer a thousand questions she didn't want to answer. Rachel knew this was all Finn's doing. He had questions and rightfully so. She just hadn't expected him to share everything with all their friends back home.

She dialed the only number she knew she could trust implicitly not to judge her. Normally that would be Kurt but he was Finn's brother, if forced to choose sides he'd choose Finn. Instead she chose the only friend she had who she knew wouldn't choose sides. Couldn't choose sides.

She answered on the first ring.

"Rachel. Rachel where are you, we've been calling you for days. Are you okay? Are you murdered?"

Rachel would have laughed had it not been such an insane question. "No Brittany I'm not murdered. I'm in New York."

In the distance Rachel could hear Santana's voice asking Brittany if it was Rachel. "Hobbit, Hobbit I'm going to kick your ass when I see you, we were all worried sick about you and I hate worrying about people who don't matter to me."

"Rachel you should come home. We're not mad at you," Brittany said without an ounce of judgment or shame.

"I'm not coming home. I want to be here. I'm fine here."

Santana must have snatched the phone away because Rachel heard her voice screaming into her ear.

"You know I'm almost impressed with you hobbit but hiding in New York like some sort of loser isn't what I'd call cool. Now get on the damn train and get your butt back down here. Quinn already jilted us for some Networking conference in New Haven. We were hoping to have a reunion."

Networking conference? Is that what Quinn told them she was up to?

"Santana I just want to be alone. I'm fine. I wanted you guys to stop worrying about me. I'm alive, I'm well. And once this call ends I'm not answering my phone again for a few days."

Santana screamed a stream of obscenities into the phone.

"Rachel. Rachel are you there?" Brittany asked.

"I'm here."

"Rachel don't be embarrassed. You messed up, everybody messes up. Santana did."

"Britt you said you wouldn't tell anyone." Santana began to plead in the background.

"She met this girl and hooked up with her at some sorority party. It's college. It's actually not that bad. Finn's angry but Puck told us he met a bunch of girls over there in Germany. You don't have to be ashamed."

Brittany was always a breath of fresh air, her outlook on life was unique, her acceptance of her friends for who and what they were was a quality Rachel had always admired. She was the least judgmental person on the planet so her opinion on the matter was clearly peppered with her optimism.

"Brittany I'm not ashamed. I did what I did but it's over. It would have been over anyway. I just wanted him to know, I think he deserved that much."

"Rachel."

"Look Brittany, I have to go. I may be home over Christmas but I'm not sure."

"Rachel." Brittany said but Rachel ended the call anyway.

* * *

Quinn woke up to the sound of pounding on the door. She and Rachel had spent the night outside the room last night. The boys had planned a party and Quinn thought it best that she and Rachel not set themselves up as outsiders. It had been nearly two a.m. before they made it back to their room. Rachel had been impossibly wasted and Quinn couldn't quite remember the details of what happened herself.

She woke up in a pair of purple silk pajama pants and a white tee-shirt. Rachel was tucked safely under the blanket quietly sleeping away the morning. Quinn shot a look at her cell phone and saw that it was nearly noon. She wanted to laugh but her head was pounding.

A loud string of heavy knocks hit the door again and Quinn drug her body out of bed and stumbled to the hotel door.

"Do not disturb. What part of that don't you people get?" She yelled as she yanked open the door. She half expected to come face to face with one of the boys, eager to ask for her help or for her opinion on some endless argument they were having about some inane subject. Instead she got the shock of her life.

"Damn Tubbers if I didn't know any better I'd think you lied to your parents to go to a party."

Quinn's head was swimming but she was positive she wasn't still sleeping. She was awake and standing face to face with Santana Lopez.

It had been months since they'd seen each other but Santana hadn't changed at all. She was flawless in her appearance, her long black hair shiny and neat, her body thin and muscular. She was wearing a professional looking black dress with a red blazer over top of it and expensive black and red heels. She looked like she was going on a job interview. Quinn was looking at her outfit when she noticed Santana was doing the same. Admiring her silk PJ's and tee-shirt.

"Santana. What." She stammered. "What are you doing here?"

Santana looked around the room behind her and smirked the way only she could. "You are officially my hero. Your dad told me that you were here making connections and networking with big shots. Instead you're having a damn party and he's footing the bill, proud as a peacock." She began to chuckle and shake her head. "He'd flip the fuck out if he saw this."

"Santana. What?" Quinn said. Her heart was pounding now and her hangover was making her head spin.

"We drove down to see if you wanted to take some time off to go track down Rachel in New York."

Quinn felt like she was going to be sick. "We?"

"Britt, Chang and Puck." Santana said as she peered over Quinn's shoulder. She was looking toward the bedroom with curiosity.

Rachel groaned in the background and Quinn watched Santana's face go from humorous to shock. "Do you have a boy in there?"

"Santana do me a huge favor and go wait outside. I'll get dressed and come right down I swear. I need you to turn around and leave right now though. If we were ever friends I need you to take off."

Santana gave Quinn a concerned stare but didn't speak. The second she opened her mouth to speak Quinn heard a voice only it wasn't Santana's.

"Quinn baby come back to bed."

Quinn watched with horror as Santana's mouth flew open. "Holy fucking hell is that the hobbit? Did she just call you baby?"

"Santana, please go outside," Quinn began to plead. Her hand was shaking now.

"Are you two getting it on now?" Santana asked.

"Please don't say anything. Don't tell anyone. I'll be down, just give me a minute."

"You big fat liar. Both of you." Santana said with excitement in her eyes.

"Santana."

Santana finally stopped staring and nodded agreeably. "Fine, I'm going, I won't tell anybody yet."

"Yet? Who are you going to tell?" Quinn said panicked.

"EVERYBODY." Santana said as she turned to walk away.

* * *

Rachel could see the horror in Quinn's face when she woke her up but Quinn wasn't talking. She'd mumbled something incoherently about Santana then started to get dressed. Rachel followed suit and over the course of the few minutes it took them to get dressed she pieced together what was going on. Santana was here. Waiting outside.

Quinn walked towards the elevator as if on her way to the gas chamber. Slowly, somber and with her head down. Rachel tried to take her hand to calm her down but Quinn shook it free and shoved it in the pocket of her sweater.

"Quinn it's just Santana, we can explain this." Rachel said with as much confidence as she could muster.

"Not just her, Puck, Brittany, and Mike Chang are with her. And Santana is going to tell on us."

Rachel's wheels began to turn. "What are they doing here?"

"They're coming to see if I want to go with them to New York to find you. I told you to call them back," Quinn said. She was upset, but not like Rachel had ever seen her before. She was afraid, she'd never seen Quinn afraid before.

"Quinn, I need to tell you something. I need to talk to you."

The elevator binged on the bottom floor and Quinn stepped off lost in her thoughts.

"I can't run from this. I can't back down. Put on your game face Rachel. I need you to be Lima Rachel right now. I need you to let me handle this. Let me do all the talking."

"Quinn, I need to tell you something." Rachel said reaching for Quinn's hand again but like last time Quinn snatched it away. She was gone, her gentle Quinn was gone, replaced by the old evil bitch Rachel had often found amusing lately. These days her presence was anything but funny. This could be bad she realized.

"Let's go." Quinn snapped. "I don't have all day, let's get it over with. Now remember, don't say anything."

* * *

Rachel was dragging her feet but Quinn didn't let it bother her. When she stepped outside into the fall air she saw Santana standing with Brittney, Mike Chang, and Puck near Brittany's mother's minivan. They'd driven nearly ten hours to get here and drag Rachel back to Lima. Ten hours, so Quinn knew they weren't going to leave without some sort of explanation.

"Hey." She screamed out excitedly rushing over to Brittany and wrapping her in a giant hug. When in doubt, act as if, she's always been told.

"Quinn." Brittany squealed. She accepted Quinn into her arms but her hug was gentle, careful. She was thinking about Quinn's back, her spine.

Puck had nearly ran her over and wrapped Rachel in a hug spinning her around off her feet in a circle. Santana was leaning against the van her eyes on Quinn as if she were waiting for something. There was humor in her eyes but in typical Santana fashion she threw Quinn for a loop when she opened her mouth.

"I told them Rachel came down to visit you last night after we talked to her." Santana said. "We probably should have spoken to you before we drove all the way down here."

Quinn shrugged. "It's good to see you guys."

"I'm starving, we're going to go grab something to eat." Mike said with Rachel in his arms. "You guys hungry?"

Quinn didn't blink. "Absolutely. I got my wallet and my keys, let's go right now."

* * *

Rachel's heart was pounding, she'd climbed into Quinn's passenger seat but once Santana saw the car she quickly hopped in the backseat. Brittany followed and it killed any chance she had to explain herself. This she knew, was going to be a disaster.

* * *

"I can't believe you have a freaking Range Rover. You're like eighteen years old."

Quinn shrugged. "I didn't buy it. My roommate's father is Tom Blake. She dates Kevin Dixon's son. They wrecked my car because they were drunk and my dad kept them from getting DUI's so their dads bought me a new car."

"You know these cost like seventy grand right." Santana said looking around. "It's not like Money Bags can't afford it though. I heard he has his own island. And I didn't even know who Kevin Dixon was until I started dating Sam. He has a poster of the guy in his bedroom. Or he did until his dad got them tossed out of their house."

"Are you guys dating?" Brittany asked. "You're acting weird and I'm getting lady kisses vibes from you both."

Quinn looked at her through her rearview mirror. "Brittany Rachel needed a place to crash and I helped her out. She was pretty upset last night."

Santana laughed. "That's an understatement. If she thinks she's upset she should see Soft Serve though. He's totally got a complex now. After finding out that the two girls who meant the most to him both cheated on him, he's totally crushed."

Quinn heard Rachel make a frustrated groan and shot her a look of confusion. Rachel cheated on Finn, she wondered. When was this? Rachel hadn't mentioned that. Unless she was talking about that idiot Pistol Pete Rachel made out with.

"Quinn." Rachel said quickly.

"When?" Quinn asked cooly. Rachel tried to speak but Santana beat her to it.

"With some guy in some band even, how desperately New York of you Berry." She looked up at Rachel over the seat, careful to lean in and speak directly into the girl's ear. "When was this hobbit?" Santana was smiling, relishing in Rachel's humiliation. Classic Santana.

"Yeah," Quinn asked. "When was this?"

"It doesn't matter. It didn't mean anything." Rachel said firmly but Quinn could tell she'd lost all sense of bravery and confidence.

"When?" Quinn asked again. This time there was no doubt in her tone that she wanted an answer to the question.

"Quinn." Rachel said pleadingly.

"WHEN?" Quinn snapped. She surprised herself and everyone else with her reaction. Santana was suddenly leaning back in her seat, her smile now gone, and Brittany was staring open mouthed but silent. "Before or after you told me nothing happened between you two?" She asked.

"Before." Rachel finally said softly. "I didn't want to tell you because I knew you'd be upset."

"So it's MY fault you've been lying to me for weeks about that boy? That skuzzball who looked at me like he wanted to punch me when I visited you last month."

"It's not important. It doesn't change anything Quinn." Rachel began to plead.

"I should have known. Nobody reacts that way over making out. God I'm so stupid. I should have seen it. And you told Finn about it and he told everyone else, that's why you haven't been answering your phone all week."

"You've been here together all week?" Brittany asked from the backseat. Santana shushed her.

"Quinn I was going to tell you," Rachel said.

"When, five seconds before you were about to get caught?"

"No, I wanted to tell you but not this weekend. I wanted to tell you in person but this trip was special."

Quinn scoffed. "Special. You lied to me. You didn't have to say anything about that boy but you did and then you lied. And that boy, that skuzzball, he hates me and it's all your fault."

"I don't care about Pete. I told you that. I told him that I wasn't available."

"How many times?"

"How many times what?" Rachel asked. Quinn knew she was playing dumb and wasn't about to let her off the hook.

"How many times did you knock boots?" Santana asked unhelpfully in the backseat.

"Once."

"Is that the truth or are you lying again?"

"That's not fair." Rachel said almost hurt.

"What isn't fair is you lying to me. I don't even care about the sex. It's the other thing that bothers me. You've been lying. You go on and on about me being honest with you and keeping my word and you lie to me for weeks."

"I was trying not to hurt you."

"By lying. Unprovoked, bold faced lying. You think getting lied to like an idiot for weeks doesn't hurt? Being played for a fool, that doesn't hurt?"

Rachel's head sank to her lap and Quinn watched her with an ounce of regret, she was being hard on her, and in front of their friends, but she couldn't let it go. Rachel had hurt her. The one person she was supposed to be totally honest with had hurt her.

"I'm sorry."

"If you say things are going to be a certain way then they actually have to be that way. Remember that? You said that to me after I missed our phone call. A phone call Rachel. You treated it like it was a natural disaster and now you go and do this." She let out a long frustrated breath. "Is that why you didn't want to mail the letter, because you were going to tell him the truth?"

"Yes."

"And at no point did it occur to you to tell me? Because I asked you specifically what was in that letter and you didn't want to talk about it."

"Because I knew you'd be upset with me and I didn't want to risk losing you." Quinn heard sniffles coming from Rachel's side of the car and realized the girl was crying. Her heart immediately broke. She sounded sorry, genuinely sorry.

"We'll talk about this later, in private." Quinn finally said mercifully ending the exchange.

They rode in silence for another few minutes before Santana leaned into the front seat. "So what's new with you guys?"

**I hope this doesn't feel out of the blue. If you go back and re-read it, the signs are there. Subtle signs, but they're there none the less.**


	8. Chapter 8

Week 13

Rachel/Quinn-Connecticut

Quinn watched Santana and Rachel playfully dance around the room as Puck, Chang, and a bunch of the New York girls and Yale guys watched with amusement. Brittany hadn't left her side since they'd made it back to the hotel and Rachel had been doing her best to put on her game face. Quinn knew Rachel, over the past week she'd gained an insight into the girl that nobody else had seemed to understand. Rachel was a fighter, a force of nature. Even now she was smiling and dancing as if nothing was amiss. Ten minutes ago she'd dragged Quinn into the bathroom of a Denny's restaurant and cried real tears begging for her forgiveness. Quinn dismissed her tears and insisted they talk later, in private. To look at Rachel you wouldn't be able to tell anything was wrong.

The second they showed up at the hotel the boys noticed Santana in the parking lot. The New Directions' videos were on constant replay in the boys room. According to Rick Wick they'd all get drunk or high and watch the things on repeat. By the time Santana actually showed up at the hotel she was a superstar to most of them. Santana, with all her modesty, relished the attention.

"You're upset," Brittany said as she laid her head on Quinn's shoulder. They'd sequestered themselves in the kitchen, far away from the action in the living room of Quinn and Rachel's hotel room. The last thing Quinn wanted to do was talk but Brittany wasn't going away.

"I'm okay," Quinn said with a phony smile and an icy coolness to her voice.

Brittany didn't speak, instead took Quinn's hand and gave it a tight squeeze.

Quinn had never been able to hide anything from Brittany. She wasn't sure anybody could. The blonde came off like a typical airhead but underneath the surface she was a master at picking up on things people tried to keep hidden. She spotted nearly everything.

"You're angry at her," she finally said. It was more of a statement than a question but Quinn answered anyway.

"Very. She lied to me." Quinn said.

"How long has it been going on between you two?"

Nobody had asked her that. The kids here flat out didn't seem to mind. Santana didn't seem to care, or if she did she didn't show it. Her and Rachel had also done a really good job keeping Puck and Chang in the dark. They didn't notice anything, although Quinn didn't expect them to. Boys, especially Puck, needed an anvil dropped on their heads most times.

"I honestly don't know Brittany. It kind of snuck up on me," Quinn admitted. She wasn't sure when she'd gone from being friends with Rachel to being in love with Rachel. The thought caught in her mind, turned in her brain like a corkscrew. She loved Rachel. Wow, talk about sneaking up on you she thought.

"What happened?" It seemed a simple enough question but even it was hard to explain.

"We were friends, then we were something more. Now we're probably nothing."

Brittany pulled away from her shoulder, freed her hand, and gave her a large frown. "Quinn don't decide this now. Don't make this decision while you're upset."

"She lied to me Brittany. She looked me right in my eyes and she lied to me. Then she let me walk into a room with that boy without telling me what was going on." Quinn hated that more than anything. She hated being left in the dark.

Brittany didn't seem sold and Quinn could tell that her explanation wasn't going to be enough to win Brittany over to her side.

"I'm not you Brittany. I can't just shrug it off like it never happened like you did with Santana."

Brittany looked across the room at Santana dancing around with Rachel. She looked happy, content. Then again she was the center of attention. You couldn't tell by looking at her that she'd nearly ruined her relationship with Brittany by being unfaithful. If asked months ago Quinn would have never believed Santana capable of doing anything that could hurt Brittany.

"I didn't just shrug it off. I cried. I cried all night after she told me. I thought about life without her, breaking up with her and moving on. But at the end of the day I love her Quinn. I love her more than I can explain and I know in my heart that if I was there, lying next to her every night where I belong, it wouldn't have happened. It's not an excuse for her behavior either. I hate that she did it. I mean how am I supposed to just be okay with her giving away something on a whim that I worked so hard to get. It took me forever to get her comfortable with the idea of us being physical. Now she can just go to some college party, get drunk and throw all of that away. It hurt. It hurt like I can't explain."

Quinn didn't understand, if it hurt so much why was she still around. Why forgive her?

"Why did you forgive her? What did she say?"

Brittany shrugged. "She didn't say anything. It's not about her. She told me the truth. She told me the truth and I realized that this was my reality. At least until I can take my place at her side again. We're hundreds of miles away from each other and she got lonely. I agreed to let her see other people. I hated it but it's the only way to salvage things. We have to be apart so we can be together again one day. Otherwise things will be ruined."

"So you gave her up?" Quinn asked.

Brittany sighed. "No, I realized the truth. She's away. She's spreading her wings and I can't be the brick tied to her back." Brittany's gaze shifted from Santana to Rachel.

"You're not a brick. Santana wouldn't be here without you. Everybody hated her you know. Well not exactly hated but not actually liked until you showed us she was a real person underneath all her bullshit and meanness."

Brittany laughed. "Potty mouth. God you're different Quinn. What happened in your car was like, wow. I would have never imagined you doing something like yelling and screaming about your feelings. I mean it's like with Rachel your guard is down." She continued to laugh but turned her attention away from Rachel and looked back towards Quinn. "And THAT is not the same Rachel either. THAT Rachel is a star. I always thought she was talented but I never really saw her as a star until now. Look at the way everybody watches her, even Santana, she's got something. Whatever happened these past few months has changed her, changed you both. You're not the same people I remember. Either of you."

Quinn shook her head. "Don't believe it, she's only acting. I know because I'm the one that taught her how to do it. I taught her how to get people to like her and she never turns it off. She never stops doing it." Quinn reconsidered. "Well almost never."

"Well you did a good job because THAT Rachel would have been with us back in Lima. That Rachel would have been our friend. She would have been a Cheerio."

Quinn wanted to laugh and tell Brittany she was crazy but she wasn't quite sure she was. "She's the same girl Brittany. The exact same girl."

Brittany nodded. "I know, she's the same girl underneath it all. Underneath it all she's the same selfish get what I want at all costs Rachel Berry. The same girl that would do anything to create a perfect storybook life for herself. Including lie about something she thinks will hinder that plan and ruin her love life. Her heart was in the right place Quinn. She loves you and she didn't want to lose you. Try and remember that." Brittany said before leaning into Quinn and giving her a peck on the cheek.

* * *

Rachel sat on the sofa looking helplessly at Quinn as she paced the hotel room floor. Quinn had kicked both her Yale and Lima friends out so she and Rachel could chat in private. Santana despite her threat to tell everyone had actually kept her mouth shut. Puckerman and Mike Chang didn't seem to be any wiser as to what was going on between her and Quinn. Rachel was relieved about this, Quinn didn't like sharing, and she would have likely freaked out if they knew and started making crude comments or asking questions. Quinn had already seemingly turned off all her feelings. She was the Quinn of old, mean, prickly, angry, and more than a bit of a bitch.

"Maybe we should just finish out the weekend and once it's over take a break." Quinn said. She didn't seem to be angry at all. Rachel knew this wasn't good. She was still in Lima Quinn mode and THAT Quinn hated Rachel.

"Quinn I'm sorry. I'm really sorry. I'll never lie to you again okay. Just please look at me." Rachel began to plead but Quinn didn't seem to be interested in her explanation.

Quinn looked at her, not only looked but smiled. A wide empty polite smile. Rachel had gotten that smile a million times back at McKinley. This was the Quinn that had to have everything in her life in perfect order. This was the Quinn who'd joined the celibacy club and never left home without her gold cross. She wanted her to turn this Quinn off and yell at her. She would even settle for the Quinn that yelled at her and made her feel like crap in front of Santana and Brittany, the cutthroat bitch.

"Quinn I want to talk to you. I don't want to talk to this girl."

Quinn still smiled emptily. "What in the world are you talking about Rachel? I am talking to you. I'm just saying that under the circumstances maybe we can take some time off. You know to make sure that we're both on the same page."

"What does that mean? We are on the same page. We love each other."

Quinn gave her a look that was filled with pity. "Of course we do honey."

Something inside Rachel's heart was breaking. "Stop it! Stop acting like this. Yell at me. Call me names. Just stop being nice to me, be angry."

Quinn gave her a false angry scowl. "Of course I'm angry."

She didn't look the least bit angry and Rachel knew something terrible had happened. She'd hurt Quinn and now she was treating her the same way she treated all the boys she dated over the years. Like an accessory she kept around for appearance sake. She remembered the cold way Quinn had treated Finn when they were together. She'd remembered wondering what Finn saw in her, wondered why he put up with her. Now she knew and the pity she'd felt for Finn evaporated in a mist of regret.

"Quinn I swear to you, I swear I will never lie to you again, just don't do this. Don't give up on me."

Rachel was fighting back tears, doing her best to hold on to her dignity. Quinn was standing across the room staring at her like she were an alien fresh off a space ship. Finally she walked over sat down beside her and wrapped her arms around her.

"Rachel don't worry, we'll be fine. I just need some time." Quinn said. Rachel wanted to believe it but even her hug felt different.

Week 14

Rachel-NYADA

Quinn hadn't done anything different, at least not on the surface. She laughed and joked, smiled politely and treated Rachel as if she were a princess. It was almost perfect. A perfect uneventful week. That was outside the room. Inside the room things had changed considerably. The first night she and Quinn shared the King sized bed with Brittany and Santana. Puck and Mike slept on the sofa. The foursome had left early the next morning well before four am.

The next few days consisted of Quinn claiming to need to sleep on the sofa to care for her back which was suddenly giving her trouble. Rachel protested but Quinn insisted. At the end of the weekend Quinn kissed her goodbye. A full on smack on the lips that finally showed some emotion. For a brief moment she let her guard down and asked for a little time to get her head together.

It was understood that Quinn wouldn't call that Friday night. Still Rachel didn't make plans and stayed in under the guise of doing her prep for her understudy role. It was empty work, she knew the part like the back of her hand. Rachel spent most of the time hoping Quinn changed her mind and made the phone call anyway. She didn't.

Week 15

Quinn-Yale

Quinn sat down at her makeup table and breathed deeply. Opening night for Church of the Soul. She hated this play and everything about it. Sure the house was packed. She'd already received dozens of roses from friends and her parents had managed to fly out to make the trip. Quinn peeked out earlier at the crowd and searched for the one face that would make her smile. When she didn't see it she steeled her nerves and pulled herself together.

Earlier today she'd sent Rachel a text asking her for more time, then she'd sent an email to her student account leaving a long rambling account of her week's activities. It wasn't exactly a conversation but it was still part of their weekly tradition. Rachel had apparently gotten the email right away and had sent an email of her own echoing her words from their Thanksgiving getaway. It wasn't what Quinn wanted to hear, it was filled with more excuses and blame shifting. Totally Rachel, not the Rachel she'd help create for New York but the old Rachel, the selfish, self centered, Lima Rachel. The Rachel capable of sending a girl to a crack house to get her out of the way. The ballot box stuffing, tantrum throwing, Glee club quitting, ego maniac. Quinn had smiled when she read the email but the second she finished it she felt dirty. Lies, more lies and deceit. She wasn't about to let Rachel hurt her. She wasn't about to let anyone hurt her, not anymore.

Still two seconds before stepping through the doors and leaving the dressing room she looked over the card that accompanied a dozen roses and read it one last time before taking the stage.

Q. Right or wrong, happy or sad, I'll always be your biggest fan. I love you now and forever. R.

Week 16

Rachel-NYADA

Rachel stood behind the curtain and stared as the show's leading lady belted out another tune. The truth didn't hide, the crowd was into it, and the show was going great. Behind the scenes however things were a nightmare. The star was the ultimate Diva. She'd made everyone miserable for weeks and now that the show was here most of the cast and crew were simply happy to be underway. The sooner they performed the sooner the show's short run ended.

Half of the crew were ready to revolt and the other half complained constantly about the diva on stage. Rachel had never complained because deep down she knew the truth. Back in Lima she behaved the same way. Constantly talking about herself, always offering opinions and threatening to quit when things went against her. Quinn was right, losing had been the best thing to ever happen to her. She'd seen first hand how not to handle things with her peers. She'd watched with open eyes and ears while a girl with all the talent in the world burned every bridge conceivable with her loud mouthed obnoxious behavior.

Rachel had wanted to call Quinn when she'd realized the girl was right about everything. Last night, a Thursday, she'd called Quinn's phone and left a long rambling message promising to be more attentive and honest. Quinn hadn't returned the call but instead she'd sent a text telling Rachel that they'd see one another back in Lima over Christmas break and talk face to face about where they were.

Rachel didn't know what that meant but she did understand that seeing Quinn again was the ultimate objective. Gaining her forgiveness was on the top of her to-do list and Rachel was content to spend every day of break groveling if need be.

With nothing more to do besides sit on the sidelines and watch the show, Rachel threw herself into projects. Wendy's band had given her a staring role in the video for 'Two Faced Bitch'. It was an honor she'd taken much pride in until Snow White had casually mentioned that Pistol Pete had written the song about her after she'd slept with him and insisted they never speak about it again. Her cold rejection without regard for his feelings had inspired his angry poetic rambling about her dismissive behavior. These days they were busy trying to get the song airplay. Dog Face had downloaded the finished video onto several online music sites and from what Rachel could tell it was getting a bit of notice. It was a mean spirited yet catchy tune that she'd caught more than one NYADA student whistling around campus.

Normally this was the sort of thing Rachel would brag about for days, constantly, to anybody who'd listen. Her small bit of notoriety was getting her attention in and out of school. Her teachers were starting to take an interest and the Freshman theatre director was already talking to her about starring in next semester's play. Instead of tooting her own horn and celebrating, she rarely mentioned it. Occasionally someone would send her a text informing her that they'd seen the video and she'd speak briefly about the experience then quickly change the subject. In the weeks since the vacation getaway Rachel heard occasionally from some of the girls from the hotel. The New York crew sometimes even were polite enough to invite her to lunch or to hang out. Rachel always accepted and wasted away the days strolling the streets with girls she barely knew, while thinking about a girl she missed, who pretended not to know her, while she counted down the days until Christmas break.

Week 17

Quinn-Yale

"One percent each," Jeff said as Quinn sipped on her Mocha Latte at the campus coffee shop.

"One percent of the whole company sounds like too much. All we did was take some meetings. They should throw us a finders fee instead. A couple grand," Quinn said giving the boy a slight nod.

"They don't have any money. This is cheaper and between you and me this idea is kind of dumb anyway. I don't see it going anywhere. This way they feel like they're cutting us in but in reality we're saving them the embarrassment of having to explain they don't have any money and probably won't ever make any on this deal. They even gave the company a dumb name, Gecko."

Quinn nodded her silent agreement. Jeff was right. He usually was. Asking for money was silly, they didn't have any and didn't stand to make any. It was easier to take the one percent. One percent of nothing was nothing anyway.

"Hey by the way did you see this?" Jeff asked Quinn as he slid his cell across the table to her.

"What are we looking at?" Quinn asked.

Jeff shrugged. "A video Carol took last weekend. The girls took Rachel out to that blues bar, Stereo. Carol knows the owner and asked him to give Rachel a few minutes on stage."

Quinn laughed. "I bet she ran on stage."

Jeff shook his head. "Carol and the girls said she's been pretty down lately, she didn't want to go up. Anyway she went up there reluctantly, half in the bag, and sang a bit of Janis Joplin."

"Joplin? Really?" Quinn asked. She'd never heard Rachel sing the blues. At least not voluntarily.

Jeff started the video and Quinn watched as a clearly drunk Rachel belted out a rendition of Cry Baby. Something in her heart broke when she saw it. Rachel looked miserable, a shell of herself, but her voice was as fantastic as usual.

"Who taped this?" Quinn asked. "I'd hate for her fathers to see it."

Jeff gave his forehead a scratch. "That may be a problem. It's online. It's all over the web already. That bitch video she's in, hanging out with the socialite bubble heads in New York. It's a perfect storm. She's already had her name mentioned on Page Six." Quinn had heard that Rachel had been spending time with some of the girls she met over Thanksgiving. Most of the girls who lived in New York full time were socialites. Parties on the weekends, sleeping until noon, pictures in the papers and staples of the New York tabloids.

She laughed at the idea of Rachel starring in her roommate's music video. Two faced Bitch. She couldn't believe people actually listened to that trashy band. Of course they listened, Punk Rock had been around for years and was likely to stick around. Even Rachel raved about how good the band was. At least it was paying off for Rachel. A famous face is all she'd ever wanted. The more well known she is the easier it will be for her to book work.

"Well hopefully she gets some work out of it. Broadway is her dream. If she can parlay it into some kind of starring role she'll be in seventh heaven."

Jeff sipped his black coffee and shoved the cell phone back into his pocket. "You guys make up yet?"

How did he know they were fighting she wondered. "No." Quinn answered honestly. No need in lying, he probably already knew anyway.

Instead of pressing the issue he changed the subject. "My mother heard about the party. Well Networking conference as your father so elegantly put it. She laughed when I tried to sell her on it at first but since she was going to be out of town for Thanksgiving anyway she said whatever. Long story short once she heard about Wick's interview going national and after I casually mentioned Ollie's Start-up she took an interest. She wanted to know who you were for getting it all set up. She's impressed even though she won't admit it. She wants to meet you."

Quinn shrugged. "Tell her I'm just some girl from Lima Ohio."

He ignored it. "She and some of the other parents want us to take it seriously next year. I mean it will be the same set up, us hanging out over Thanksgiving, but they want us to put some paperwork in place so they can sponsor it."

Quinn shrugged. "Why would they bother?"

"Ollie is a third generation Van Trypp, grandson of a steel baron. Money will never be an issue for him. Ever. For him to try to get this start up off the ground is a big deal. Even though it's a shitty idea his father is happy he's got ambition. Wick's dad is grooming him for VP of News or some other fancy title. That all happened that weekend. They're interested in seeing what else we can do. If you think about it, it didn't take much actual work. A phone call here and there, a few conversations over beers and X-Box. If we can pull something out of our ass every once in a while why not let them foot the bill."

Quinn didn't know what to say so she shrugged. "Fine by me. What, do we print up fliers or pamphlets or something?"

Jeff shrugged. "Who knows. That programmer we have to hire, let's make him put together a website for us as an interview project."

Quinn laughed. "Free sounds good to me."

Jeff nodded. "Free sounds great." He pushed himself away from the table and stood up. "I gotta get ready to take off. Mom's off in Japan and I'm heading to my sister's for the holiday." He slung his bag over his shoulder and sipped his coffee again. "You should call her. She was good for you. When she was around you were less tense. It was the only time I saw you smile for more than one second at a time."

Week 18

Rachel/Quinn-Lima

"This guy! This is who you had sex with? Of course she's pissed. I'm pissed you had sex with THIS guy," Santana said as she watched the video for 'Two Faced Bitch' on Rachel's laptop. Santana rolled her eyes and pushed the laptop closed. "Girl's like us don't sleep with guys like this Rachel. God I can't witness any more of your shame Berry. This is humiliating."

Santana had been scolding her for the past ten minutes, taking the time to watch the video twice so she could make an accurate assessment of how badly Rachel had screwed up.

"He's a nice guy."

"He's a skuzzball. Q was totally right about that. He shouldn't be able to get a girl like you in his dreams. Berry you've finally made a name for yourself, your famous, at least in New York. You're totally hot and you're in the newspapers and all over the internet with this cheesy ass video. Don't blow it by banging some trashy band guy. Now the lady bits aren't for everybody so if you MUST date a guy, make sure he's worthwhile. This guy isn't worth while."

"His band has a record deal." Rachel said defensively.

"Because YOU'RE in the video. You're the only reason that it's getting airplay. You banged him a record contract. And I'll tell you what, once I get my shit together I'm coming to New York and we're going to hang out and I just may bang you for a record deal."

Brittany gave Santana's arm a pinch and the girl yelped. "Ow, I'm just kidding."

"Not Rachel. She's on the no-bang list." Brittany said with a smirk.

Rachel was confused, what exactly was the no-bang list? "What are you guys talking about?"

"Santana cheated so I agreed to let her see other people until I can go out to Kentucky to keep an eye on her. So we made a list. A no-bang list. You're on it, and Quinn's on it. Since you're both lesbian's now. Santana is banned from sexy times with you."

Rachel's mouth was agape, she didn't actually consider herself a lesbian but she pulled it together. "Brittany I love you like a sister and I'd never do that to you."

Brittany shrugged. "You better not. I'm may be a Packer's fan but I'll punch you if you do."

"Packer's fan?"

Santana was clearly still fluent in Brittany because without skipping a beat she explained. "Pacifist."

"And you Rachel, you need to apologize to Quinn. You really hurt her. I know Quinn really well, she's one of my best friends and I could see how hurt she was. You could see it in her face and Quinn always keeps a stone face. What you did was awful. When Santana cheated she called me and told me right away. She confessed and apologized and promised to make it up to me. The problem was I was miles away and she was lonely, people get lonely. You got lonely. The problem was you lied about it. Lying about it is worse because it's like calling somebody stupid."

"I don't think you're stupid baby, and I'll never do it again. If I do you can spank me."

Brittany laughed. "I'm gonna do that anyway."

"Hey, innocent ears here," Rachel said covering her ears with her hands. Brittany pulled them away suddenly back to business.

"The thing is you should have told her the truth right away. Having her find out on her own is a million times worse than you telling her," Santana said with all the wisdom of somebody who knew exactly what was at stake and chose to do the RIGHT thing about it.

"What should I do?" Rachel asked.

"Go over and apologize." Brittany said. "Take responsibility."

Santana nodded her agreement. "And if that doesn't work at least ask for a goodbye bang."

**So not much Rachel/Quinn interaction this update. Don't fret though, I promise a lot of interaction next update.**


	9. Chapter 9

Week 18

Rachel/Quinn-Lima, Ohio

"We don't have to figure everything out right now Rachel but we do have to figure it out. I want to know why it was so easy for you to lie to me. I mean we're supposed to be each other's people. I was supposed to be able to trust you if I couldn't trust anybody else in the world."

Quinn heard Rachel let out a long uncomfortable breath before the girl finally broke her silence. She'd listened quietly while Quinn made peace with her dishonesty. Sat silent and offered no excuses for twenty minutes while Quinn danced around her dishonesty, throwing verbal jabs and tossing accusations like darts. Rachel simply took it all without defending herself once.

"I know I messed up but it'll never happen again." Rachel said with an honesty and confidence Quinn found reassuring. She sounded like she believed it, which made Quinn want to believe it.

"I believe you. I believe you don't WANT to hurt me again," Quinn said. It was all her mind would allow her to believe. Rachel was clearly sorry for what had happened but like Brittany had pointed out she was inherently Rachel, and at the end of the day she'd always do what she had to do to make herself happy and successful. If that meant lying to Quinn about having sex with some random boy then so be it. If she loved Rachel she had to love all of her. Selfish bits and all.

"I won't hurt you."

"I know you don't WANT to hurt me."

Rachel's end of the phone went silent and Quinn immediately felt bad. She wanted to put this behind her but she was constantly doing this. Poking and prodding Rachel with her mistakes. Picking fights.

"Quinn is there something you want to know, something you want to ask me? I don't think we can put this behind us until you get it out of your system." Rachel didn't sound angry or annoyed, she sounded almost reticent to speak but was forcing herself to plow through it.

"What was it about that boy that made you do it? Then why lie to me about it?" It was a question that had been eating away at her for weeks. Why? The guy was a total skuzzball, dirty hair and a nose ring. He was cute in a bad boy way but surely not the type of guy a girl threw everything away for.

Quinn knew all about sabotaging yourself. She'd done a thorough job of that with Finn back in Lima. Sometimes things were so stifling that ruining them was the only way out of it. Quinn had done this with Finn. She imagined herself stuck in a life that she didn't want to live, with a boy she simply tolerated, and she panicked. She invited Puck over, pretended to get drunk and had sex with him. It was a betrayal so awful she knew Finn would never forgive her for it when he found out. Cheating on him with Puck was a rejection of him as a person. It was one thing to trade up but having sex with Puck was definitely trading down. Puck was his total opposite, a good guy with a good heart, but with no serious prospects for the future. She knew it would do the maximum amount of damage to Finn's ego and self esteem, she knew it would create total carnage and she'd done it anyway. Once she realized she was pregnant she panicked but by then it was too late. She tried to regain control through lies and deceit but failed. That was when everything fell apart.

It was that string of lies and regret that haunted her now. Rachel had done something totally uncharacteristic and spontaneous and then lied about it. Was she doing what Quinn had done herself? Lying to regain the life she'd carelessly thrown away. Was Quinn the comfortable safe place that simply made sense to her? The thing that was stifling and boring that she didn't want but was somehow safe and worth considering? Was being with her the life she didn't envision herself living? Was she who Rachel was trying to get away from? Was she Rachel's backup plan like Finn had been hers?

"It didn't mean anything Quinn, why does it matter?"

Quinn laughed. "Now it's your turn to ask why. Why don't you want to tell me?"

Rachel sat quietly for a moment then admitted the truth. "I lied because I was ashamed. I was ashamed of what I'd done and I didn't want you to know. I didn't want you looking at me the way you did. I didn't want you looking at me and thinking I was some slutty girl who sleeps around. I made a mistake Quinn, a terrible mistake but that's all it was."

It sounded real enough. It sounded legit but her lies had sounded real also. "Why him?"

"It's going to sound terrible," Rachel admitted.

"Try me."

"Because he was there. Because he was there and he liked me." She offered a half chuckle. "He liked me and I was mad at you. I lied about that too. I WAS getting back at you. You kept rejecting me and I needed to be wanted. So I slept with a boy, somebody who could pose no real threat to what I felt about you. I wanted to feel loved and wanted and cared for so I made a mistake."

"So it was about me?" Quinn asked.

"Yes. It was about you. It was about my feelings for you. It always was."

"So he," Quinn asked.

"Meant nothing to me. It sounds bad I know, but I used him. That's why he hates me so much, why he's so angry with me, I used him. I used him to try to get over you but it only made it worse. It made me realize that no matter what happened, no matter how hard I tried not to, I love you. And it's not going away."

"You want it to go away?" Quinn asked. Her feelings were almost hurt.

"I did when I thought you didn't want me. You kept rejecting me, rejecting my feelings for you. What was I supposed to do?"

"Talk to me about it," Quinn suggested.

"Yeah, that sounds like a brilliant plan. Why didn't I think of that?"

Quinn snickered. "Fine. Maybe I wasn't so receptive to the idea."

"No, you weren't. I just wanted you to understand why I did it. I'm sorry I lied to you."

"Why tell Finn and lie to me? I don't get that part either."

"Because I wanted him to be mad at me and never want to speak to me again. I just didn't anticipate him telling everybody. It was a half assed plan and a hurtful thing to do."

"It sure was," Quinn said. "And in the realm of half assed plans it ranks at number one. If you wanted a sneaky plan you would have been better off asking me. I was raised with sneaky plans."

Rachel cut her off. "Speaking of being raised with sneaky plans, what's going on at your house. You said your dad's there."

"Sleeping in the guest room. Apparently he thinks a man of his new status should be living with his family. My mom let him come home but she's making him sleep in the guest room. He's paying all the bills and she's quit her job. Last night they were even having sex. She thinks I don't know but I do."

"How could your mother take him back?"

Quinn wanted to laugh. "You mean after he lied, cheated and committed any other number of crimes against their relationship?"

Rachel cleared her throat and let the silence overcome them both.

"I'm sorry, I'm still getting the hang of this whole forgive and forget thing. Let's say we move past it, tell me what you've been up to since we talked last. Santana told me she came to see you."

Rachel laughed. "Did she? She practically bit my head. Apparently I'm the only one who doesn't think Pete is a skuzzball. She said the same thing you did."

* * *

Something inside Rachel's mind snapped her awake when she heard Quinn's voice. It was unmistakably her, distant and soft but surely her voice. She'd been dreaming about that voice for weeks, imagining it whispering into her ear, speaking softly to her at night. Wishing her goodnight. If asked she'd have claimed to know it in her sleep.

"Are you okay sweetheart, you look upset."

Rachel heard her father Hiram's voice next and forced herself to sit up in bed. Her bedside clock blinked 12:15. It was late, too late for a pop in. What was Quinn doing here so late?

"I'm fine sir, I know it's late but I didn't want to go home. I was hoping I could see Rachel."

"Sure thing sweetie, you know the way." Rachel could hear the concern in her father's voice but Quinn sounded like she usually sounded. Cool and relaxed, only there was a hint of something else in her voice that Rachel recognized right away. Sorrow.

"Thank you."

"Quinn," Rachel called out to her. "Is that you?"

Her bedroom door opened and the bright light from the hallway filled the room. It engulfed Quinn in shadows as she stepped into the room and she disappeared into blackness as the door closed behind her.

"It's me." She answered with a sniffle.

"What's wrong honey?" Rachel asked pulling herself out of bed.

She didn't say anything, instead she wrapped Rachel in a tight hug and pressed her face against Rachel's shoulder. She could feel the dampness of tears against her flesh, she was crying. She knew pressing the issue wouldn't accomplish anything. Quinn couldn't be pressured into talking about things, she'd become defiant if challenged too harshly so Rachel did the only thing she knew for sure that would work. She embraced her and offered comfort.

"It's okay Quinn, I'm here. Everything's okay."

* * *

Quinn gave Rachel a soft kiss on the cheek but forced herself not to do anything more. Rachel's fathers were right down the hall and she was a guest in their home. Groping their daughter in her sleep wasn't acceptable behavior for a guest.

She wasn't sure what had come over her last night. She'd been driving around feeling sorry for herself when she found herself in front of Rachel's house. It had been weeks since she'd seen the girl and she worried she wouldn't be welcomed. She knew they'd made up but she'd behaved badly. Pushed her away and forced the two of them apart. She'd been childish and petty, jealous and immature. She half expected to have a door slammed in her face.

Instead Rachel had wrapped her up in a tight embrace and held her close. Quinn had cried on her shoulder for what felt like an hour until she'd fallen asleep. It felt good to finally let go of all the pain and the confusion she felt from being at home with her father again.

Last night had been unusually tough. He hadn't done anything he hadn't done a million times before today, last night had just been too much. She couldn't take it, his constant judgment and scrutiny. His endless barrage of questions and inquiries about her friends and her activities while away. She finally lost it and left the house with him calling out to her the whole time. She'd driven around for hours before finally finding herself parked in Rachel's driveway.

"Hmm," Rachel moaned softly. "What are you doing?"

"Nothing, kissing you. Trying to make up." Quinn admitted. "I'm sorry about the way I acted. I realize I haven't apologized yet."

"If you promise to be quiet you can make it up to me." Rachel teased.

"But your fathers are right down the hall," Quinn said. She was serious but her hand was already creeping beneath Rachel's shirt.

Rachel sat up on the bed and in one swift motion pulled her shirt up over her head. "I don't care. I've missed you and I want to show you how much I love you."

"I love you too."

"Well prove it. Get your clothes off and do your best to be quiet."

Quinn obeyed. "Yes ma'am."

Week 19

Rachel/Quinn-Lima

"I can't make it over today I told you I have to visit my grandma, we're leaving in an hour," Quinn said with as much bravery as she could muster. Rachel knew it was hard for her to say no and lately she'd been milking that for all it was worth.

Rachel pulled the phone away from her ear and spoke directly into the mouth piece. "I want to see you, it's Christmas Eve Quinn. I have a gift for you."

Quinn smacked her lips. "You do not. You gave me my gift last night."

Rachel and Quinn had managed to steal a few hours together yesterday and spent almost every second of it in bed. Rachel had slipped a tiny box into Quinn's purse before she left for the night. Quinn had apparently found it. She had also made much more of a production out of giving Rachel her gift. She'd wrapped it up in a neat little box with a pink ribbon and snowman wrapping paper. It was all very Quinn.

Rachel had opened it the second Quinn had taken off for the night. Her heart dropped when she saw it. Quinn had spent several hundred dollars on an iPad, a totally extravagant gift that Rachel loved. She had been playing with the thing all night.

"I know but I should still be able to see my girlfriend when I want. It's not like we're hundreds of miles away. You're right across town."

Quinn pounced. "Is that what I am, your girlfriend?"

"Uh, yeah. We established that in New Haven."

Rachel was suddenly offended that Quinn had seemed to have forgotten that. How could she forget that, it had been such a huge deal for her back in Connecticut? She'd made a big point of pointing out that she didn't want to have sex with anybody she wasn't in a relationship with.

"Did we. I mean we didn't establish that we were exclusive did we? We said we were together but that could mean any number of things. I mean if you want me to be your girlfriend that's fine but we should really talk about it and not just assume."

Rachel's blood was boiling now. "You're fucking kidding me."

Quinn didn't back down. "Don't swear at me! And you never said it how am I supposed to know?"

Rachel was about to freak out when the doorbell rang. Instead of yelling she breathed deep and gave herself a minute to collect her thoughts. She wasn't going to get goaded into a fight. This was classic Quinn, when things weren't going well she picked a fight. Rachel wasn't going to buy into it, she'd always held firm. She counted to ten and took a different approach.

"Tell me what's wrong. You're upset about something." Rachel said instead.

The doorbell rang in the distance. "Nothing's wrong. You just want me to drop everything every time you call and I'm supposed to just get naked every time you get an itch."

"Quinn that's not how it is and you know it." The doorbell rang again and Rachel cursed to herself. "Give me a second somebody is at the door."

"You know what clearly you have better things to do than talk to me. I have to go see my grandma anyway. Just call me when you have time."

Rachel finally let herself get angry. "Don't you dare hang up on me, I swear to God I'll get in the car and drive over to your house right now if you do." They'd avoided spending any time at Quinn's house since her father was back home. Rachel's dads didn't ask questions. Rachel knew they suspected something but they were generous with her privacy and didn't press for details. Quinn's father wouldn't afford them that same luxury. He had to know everything and they both knew that sitting in Quinn's room with the door shut would draw his attention. Catching them cuddling in bed would surely cause a panic, it may even get Quinn kicked out again.

She stomped down the stairs toward the front door while Quinn sat quietly on the other end of the phone. Usually she'd be causing a stink by now, pouting and doing her best to fight for Rachel's attention. This time she was just sitting there quietly.

"Tell me you want me to be your girlfriend. Say the words." Quinn finally said.

Rachel grabbed the door handle and shook her head. As much as she loved Quinn she was amazed at the girl's sometimes needy behavior. "And people call me the diva. Fine, be my girlfriend," she whispered into her cell phone.

When she pulled open the door she was looking right in Quinn's beautiful green eyes. Quinn was smiling and Rachel let all her anger melt away.

"I accept." Quinn finally said.

* * *

Rachel had been quiet all day and Quinn knew something was wrong. Rachel was never quiet. Today was supposed to be a good day. Christmas had passed yesterday and she was wearing the gold bracelet Rachel had bought her for Christmas but the girl was still moping around Santana's living room. They were sharing Santana's leather sofa while Santana and Brittany sat comfortably on the love seat. Brittany's legs were draped across Santana's lap while the fiery Latina gave her a foot rub.

"What's wrong?" Quinn had been avoiding asking the question but Rachel was making it hard to ignore it.

Rachel didn't respond but leaned into Quinn and snuggled up close. Quinn wasn't sure when the two of them had decided to be open and honest about everything with Brittany and Santana but it felt good not to hide. Since they'd come home things had been awkward, stolen moments alone, quiet phone calls and make out sessions in the back seat of cars. It was everything Quinn hadn't done in high school. Being able to relax and not worry about being seen was nice.

"Nothing," Rachel said nuzzling her face into Quinn's shoulder.

"You guys are so cute together. I always told Santana you guys were perfect for one another."

Santana shrugged seeming to ignore Brittany's comment. "You're like two dogs in heat, constantly humping each other. Give it a rest already."

"We don't get to see each other that much. And when we do we have to hide," Rachel said turning her attention back to Quinn. "I can't wait to get back to normal."

"I wouldn't call New York normal." Santana argued. "LA is the place to be. Hollywood, sunshine, the beach."

Brittany nodded. "LA sounds like a plan. The second I graduate we're going."

"What about college?" Santana had literally flipped a coin when deciding whether to choose the college path or the 'chasing her dream path in California' path. She'd landed on college on the first toss and changed the odds to the best of three. After college won out again she switched college from heads to tails and flipped again, and lost. Finally she grudgingly accepted fate and made up her mind to go to college. It seems a year of it was clearly enough for her though because she was already talking about dropping out to move to California.

"College has been around since the end of time. It'll be there if things don't work out. After seeing how Berry is kicking ass in New York I'm tempted to give it a go too. I mean I'm a lot more resourceful than she is." Santana looked Rachel in the eyes and shrugged. "No offense. But you're doing good, you have an agent already and everything. I heard that stuff is supposed to take months of grinding it out to happen."

Rachel sighed. "It's a fluke Santana. And the only reason any of it happened is because of Quinn. I'm hanging out with girls I met while with her."

"Those girls love me," Santana said confidently.

"The boys did." Quinn hadn't had the heart to tell her that her domineering personality had overwhelmed most of the girls. Now that she was talking about throwing her whole life out of whack she felt it necessary to mention it.

"I know THEY did. The girls needed a little more time to get to know me. I mean I'm rough around the edges. I'm from Lima Heights Adjacent after all, it's practically the ghetto."

Rachel laughed. "You are not from the ghetto. Your house is bigger than mine and Quinn's put together. And your wardrobe cost more than my car."

"Semantics," Santana argued. "And besides once you hit up this fashion show your going to be sporting all kind of designer duds. I'll be borrowing YOUR clothes which is something I never thought would happen."

"What fashion show?" Quinn asked. Rachel hadn't mentioned any fashion show. She hadn't mentioned much about her suddenly burgeoning career. The fact that she had an agent was something she'd learned from Santana. Rachel hadn't thought to mention that to her.

"Just this thing some of the girls invited me to. Once Sophie found out I was going she pulled some strings and got us seated up front. Carol and I at least." She pulled her head away from Quinn's chin and kissed her lightly on the cheek. "We have to talk about some of this stuff too. Things are happening."

"What things?" Quinn asked.

Rachel leaned back into her. "Things. Career things. I'm going to have to make some decisions soon. I want us to talk about them. What they mean for us."

Quinn realized that sounded ominous. "That doesn't sound good."

"It's fine. The thing is I just have to go back to New York soon."

"How soon?"

"Two days," Rachel said her voice shaky and nervous. "I have an job. It's a small part in a play and it's temporary but it's on Broadway. The director was at my single performance of Children of God."

"I thought you lost out on the lead." Santana asked.

"It's a school play, for a grade, so the last show was all understudies. Apparently there were people in the crowd."

People. Quinn was going to ask what people but decided against it. Rachel was being cagey and she'd made up her mind they weren't going to fight again. Not until they absolutely had to. Rachel would tell her about it when she was ready.

"And one of these people was impressed with your performance and offered you a job?" Quinn couldn't resist the question. She had to say something, Rachel surely expected something.

"Yes. A small part but I didn't have to audition for it. I can't turn it down. If I do a good job I can build off it."

Quinn nodded. "So your leaving. What about New Years? We were supposed to spend it together."

Brittany's optimism took over. "We can totally do New Years tomorrow night. I mean all we need is a clock. The only things is you guys won't be able to do your lady kisses because the other Glee kids want to see you before you leave."

Quinn did her best not to overreact as usual. "Tomorrow night?" That was a total rip off, she said to herself.

"Sorry I didn't tell you. I was going to tell you later on. In private." Once again Rachel sounded genuinely sorry, but waiting until the very last minute to share something like this was a bit annoying. She wasn't giving them a lot of time to say their goodbyes.

"You should have told me earlier, I'd have figured out a way to stay the night."

"I know but I figured we'd spend tomorrow night together. I didn't know we had a party to do."

Quinn took her hand and gave it a squeeze. "It's okay. It'll give me a reason to get out of the house."


	10. Chapter 10

Week 18

Rachel/Quinn-Lima

Rachel stepped over Sugar as she snuck into Brittany's den and climbed onto the fold out sofa and cuddled up beside Quinn. Sugar had insisted she share the den with Quinn claiming her Aspergers entitled her to special arrangements and had caused such a stink about it Rachel didn't argue. Anything she said would have drawn attention to the fact that she desperately wanted to share a room with Quinn and Quinn couldn't handle them being outed. Not right now. Rachel had been tossed in a room with Tina, Kurt and Blaine but had been unable to sleep. She wasn't used to sleeping around strangers, she was used to sleeping alone, or with Quinn. Wendy hardly ever made it home at night and when she did Rachel was usually already asleep.

Quinn wasn't sleeping either, her eyes were on the door when Rachel walked in. She'd sent her a text a moment ago on the off chance the girl was awake and had lucked out when Quinn answered. Quinn asked her to stop by for a few minutes to cuddle and Rachel couldn't say no. It was their last night together before she head back to New York.

She hated the idea of leaving Quinn in Lima to go back to the city. She'd worked so hard getting out of Ohio to make it to New York and become successful and now that it was actually happening all she wanted was to climb into bed with Quinn and sleep. Fame and stardom seemed an silly trade off.

All her life she'd dreamed of Broadway and success, fame, fortune, riches, and adoration. It had become such a staple of who she was that when she stepped out onto a New York street and encountered her first fan she'd nearly freaked out. The fan was young, probably thirteen or fourteen at the oldest but she was inherently Rachel Berry-ish. Young determined and full of questions. She'd asked a dozen questions most of which Rachel didn't have the answers to and finally left with an autograph and a cell phone photo.

Rachel was shocked by the attention. It was the video. The response to the thing was overwhelming. Rachel had done it as a favor but she hadn't expected anyone to see it. She hadn't said anything, the role hadn't required any dialog. All she'd been asked to do was cuddle up with Pistol Pete and Dog Face in a rented apartment and sit by disinterested while they fought over her. At the end of the video she'd dumped them both for yet another boy. It had taken nearly a full day to shoot but Rachel hadn't expected anything to come of it. It was a favor, and a resume builder.

The performance of Janis Joplin on the other hand she hadn't even remembered doing. She'd gone out with Carol to a blues bar and had practically blacked out afterwards. Watching herself sing was a miserable sight. She only listened to Joplin when she was feeling unusually sad about something and knowing she was fighting with Quinn when it had been recorded only made her performance seem all the more desperate and lonely. When she was sent a link to the video on the internet she'd nearly died from embarrassment. The fact that she was the only one who minded that she was in a drunken stupor only made it all worse. A star making performance fueled by shame and alcohol. Yippie.

"We have to be quiet, Sugar sleepwalks," Quinn said in a whisper as she wrapped her arm around Rachel's waist..

"What!" Sleepwalks. Rachel had never met anyone who actually did that. It was always something she saw on TV, a comedic activity television used for fun.

"That's why she wanted the room with the fewest people in it. She just did like a hundred jumping jacks and ran in a circle while singing the theme to Flashdance."

Rachel chuckled. "Really?"

Quinn fought back a laugh. "Seriously, it's a real thing. I called her name and everything but she didn't even answer me. I bet she won't remember any of it when she wakes up."

"So it's like she's not even here?" Rachel asked playfully.

"No, not with her lying right there. What am I some exhibitionist?"

"We won't see each other for like a month," Rachel began to plead.

Quinn still wasn't convinced. "Not with Sugar sleeping on the floor Rachel."

"I'm leaving tomorrow. I'm going back to New York and Sophie keeps telling me that my life is never going to be the same again. Who knows when we'll get another chance to be alone together."

"What does that mean?"

Rachel shrugged. "That things are changing. I signed an autograph before I left, did I tell you that?"

"No, you didn't. You haven't been telling me much lately. It's like since our fight we're a million miles apart. And with you going back to New York I don't have the time to fix it."

Rachel nuzzled closer. "Nothing's broken. We're fine. I just have to wrap my head around what's going on in my life. And we need to make time for one another."

Quinn offered her a kiss on the face. "All your dreams are coming true. I always knew you could do it. You're a star Rachel. It's your time to shine."

"What about us? What if things change?" It was the one thing that had been bothering her since things started happening for her. Change. Things were going to change and yet they couldn't if she wanted her relationship with Quinn to work out.

"We're going to be fine Rachel."

She sounded like she knew what she was talking about but Quinn always sounded that way. She was so confident and comfortable. Lima Quinn was Wonder Woman. New York Rachel on the other hand was just pretending to be Wonder Woman.

"Why don't you come visit me more? Will you consider doing that?" Rachel finally asked.

"How much more? Once a month is what we decided."

"Every three weeks. That's not too much more but it's more." Rachel had actually done the math, it was at least four more visits a year.

"What's this about Rachel? Am I missing something obvious, because I've mentioned quite a few times that I'm not good with feelings and emotions. We didn't do that stuff at my house. And in the spirit of being a supportive girlfriend I want to help you take over the world. So I'm asking what's wrong so I can say something supportive to help you fix it."

Rachel closed her eyes and did her best to shut off her brain. "Let's just lay here for a while. I want to see Sugar do jumping jacks."

"Fine, but this conversation isn't over."

Week 21

Quinn-Yale

Quinn closed her laptop and checked her clock. 5:02pm. She was late, two minutes late but late none the less. If Quinn had been late Rachel would have freaked, but Quinn wasn't Rachel. She surely wasn't going to freak. Rachel was working, on Broadway, fulfilling her dream. Complaining about a phone call wasn't very supportive. Or helpful.

When her phone rang she answered right away. School had been back in session for a week and Quinn was doing her best to find her stride. Her reviews from her professors for her role in Church of the soul were great. She'd been given an A for her portrayal of Rosanna. Despite her reluctance to take the lead Quinn had fun on stage. It was the first time in months she was able to block everything out and simply have a good time.

"Hello."

"Quinnie baby, this is your dad." Quinn's heart deflated almost immediately. Her father had been calling a lot lately. He'd been taking his role as local big shot to heart these days. He was suddenly on all sorts of committees and local boards and was even talking about running for local office. He was completely ridiculous, acting like he'd invented the wheel. Bragging about his connections. It was making Quinn sick because he was constantly calling and asking questions.

"Daddy, I'm in the middle of something," Quinn said hoping to get him off the phone. She'd much rather talk with Rachel.

"I'll make it quick pumpkin," he said sounding totally silly. Pumpkin. He hadn't called her that in years. "What was the name of that start-up your friend started again?"

"Gecko." A stupid name. Jeff was right about that.

"Did you make him sign those papers you got from Roy?"

Frannie's husband Roy was a lawyer who had given Quinn a stack of papers to make Ollie's new programmer sign so he wouldn't get scammed. Quinn's biggest fear had been forgetting something and ending up in court one day explaining why SHE was given such a huge responsibility and how she'd blown it. To combat this she'd asked Roy for advice and he'd jumped at the chance to help. He'd given her a stack of papers to have the kid sign. She'd done as she was told and handed everything over to Ollie. He'd responded by sending over paperwork promising two percent of the total company to her and Jeff. Jeff had handled the interview personally while Quinn sat silently and did her best not to say anything stupid.

"Yes daddy. I handed everything over to Ollie."

"Good. Gecko you said?"

"Yes." Quinn said. "It has something to do with some famous trader or something Ollie said. He said it's named after Michael Douglas."

Her father laughed. "Watch the movie Wall Street Quinnie. It's important to what's going on. If your going to be involved you should at the very least know what the hell the company does."

"Daddy this is just some thing they're doing. Jeff and I don't think it's going to go very far." Jeff had used the words train wreck on several occasions as a matter of fact. Expecting this to amount to anything was a mistake. Ollie was a good guy but he had the attention span of a house fly. She couldn't imagine him running any sort of business.

"Don't say stuff like that Quinnie, not out loud. As a matter of fact I think you should invest a little money. True it may be money thrown down the drain but these kids will remember it."

Quinn forced herself from being snide. Her father could do this all day long. Network and plot. Quinn understood what he was saying she just resenting him calling out of the blue interrupting her time with Rachel to tell her this, it was just so random.

"Okay daddy," was all she said. She wasn't sure what else she could say.

"Good. Now tell me which one of these boys you have your eye on. Your mother wants to know."

Quinn did sigh this time. Her mother hadn't asked one question about boys the whole Christmas break. They spoke about a lot of things, clothes, classes, her show, but boys hadn't come up once. Boys hadn't come up since she'd gotten pregnant. It was suddenly a taboo subject for them.

Quinn heard her call waiting click on the phone and her heart leapt. "Daddy that's my call waiting."

"We're almost done pumpkin," he said confidently. Quinn wanted to cry.

She spent the next ten minutes dancing around the subject of boys. She considered telling him the truth, that she wasn't dating boys. If she did that though he'd want to know why. It wasn't a good idea. Instead she listened to him give insulting advice on how to spin her pregnancy into a plus. By the time she finally got him off the phone she felt like she'd needed a shower.

She dialed Rachel back but her phone went straight to voice mail. She left a quick apology and hung up feeling cheated. Her phone chimed with a message reminder and she saw she had a text message from Rachel.

Hey, sorry I was late don't be mad. I called but you didn't answer. I have to get ready to go on so I won't be available for a few hours I'll try and call later. If I don't reach you, I love you. R.

Quinn fought the urge to pout but looked forward to talking to Rachel later.

* * *

It was after midnight when Rachel called. Rachel was distracted, laughing and chatting with someone on the other end of the line when Quinn answered her phone. Quinn hadn't gone out partying tonight, she'd chosen instead to spend the night in with Jules catching up. At least that was the excuse she'd been telling herself. Actually she'd been excited to speak to Rachel again.

Jules had began to feel trapped in her fake relationship with Dustin. She claimed to be annoyed by him but Quinn knew better. The truth was she getting lots of attention from boys these days and was starting to wonder if a real relationship was out there. Dustin it seems had done wonders for her reputation. Dustin's reputation as a skirt chasing playboy was now notorious and Jules' seeming taming of him was now the talk of the school. Dustin had even gone so far as to say that Jules was great in bed. Normally this sort of thing would have driven her crazy but Dustin had been sure to explain that the girl wasn't prone to sleeping around and was serious about guys showing her a real commitment before they slept together. According to Dustin she didn't simply 'hook up' but when she did get comfortable with a guy she was a wildcat. Quinn had even heard half the guys calling her Wildcat behind her back. The whole thing was insane but Quinn was sure that when Jules and Dustin finally called it quits she'd be snapped up by another guy in record time. Jules it seems was ready now.

"Quinn hey baby," Rachel said eagerly. She sounded a bit slurred but Quinn didn't mention it. It was after midnight on a Friday night. Of course Rachel had been drinking.

"How was your show?" Quinn had been forcing herself to be more attentive to Rachel's feelings. The girl was keeping her cards close to the vest and it was starting to get annoying. She figured if she could close the gap between them Rachel would be more open and more likely to share her secrets.

"Great. It was unreal. It was everything I ever wanted it to be. I wish you were here. I was born to be on that stage Quinn."

"I'm coming up to see it next weekend."

Rachel said something to someone in the background and began to laugh.

"Who is that? Wendy?"

Rachel laughed harder. "God no. This is Myra. She's the new Wendy. Wendy dropped out when she got her recording contract."

Myra. She sounded nerdy and boring Quinn thought to herself. "She sounds like a hoot."

"She's great. She's a singer too Quinn. She's new to NYADA this semester."

They were having such a good time Quinn wasn't sure if she should hang up now or not. She was starting to feel like a third wheel, even though Rachel had been the one to call. Instead she chose to change the subject and regain control of the conversation.

"So you like the show? I mean of course you had fun but did you actually enjoy the role."

This was the sort of question Rachel would usually prattle on about for twenty minutes. Tonight was different though.

"Yeah, it's okay. Oh, did I tell you that Sophie is getting interest from Record companies?"

"Record companies? I thought you wanted to be a Broadway Star. A recording artist is a totally different thing Rachel. Are you sure you're up for that? It would leave you very little actual time to do Broadway."

This seemed to get under skin. "Sophie says I can do both." There was a hint of something in her tone that Quinn had become quite familiar with lately. Annoyance. Instead of arguing she simply said okay.

"Well good. I hope it works out, look Rachel I have to go to bed, we have auditions for the second semester play in the morning and I want to be ready."

"Oh yeah?" Rachel asked. She sounded skeptical but Quinn ignored it.

"Yeah we're doing The Deadline. I'm going for the editor role."

"Deadline? Don't you guys do any musicals?"

"This isn't NYADA Rachel, this is an acting program. Musical theatre is a whole other thing, you know that. I don't want to be a singer."

Rachel made a funny sound with her mouth. "You don't want to be an actress either remember but yet there you are."

Quinn wasn't sure what that was supposed to mean. Instead of picking a fight and asking she simply decided to cut the conversation short. Fighting with Rachel on the phone was sometimes fun but tonight it was getting under her skin.

"Rachel I have to go, I'll talk to you later."

"Next weekend," Rachel said finally sounding a bit sad that the call was ending.

"I'll see you then too, I'm coming to your show, don't forget."

"I won't. Love you." Rachel said.

"I love you too."

Week 22

Rachel-NYADA

Sophie was tapping away on her Black Berry as Rachel stared at herself in the mirror. She'd been doing the show for a week now and the butterflies she felt before every show were like old friends at this point. The audience was like an old shoe, uncomfortable at times but so familiar she couldn't imagine her life without it.

Sophie tucked a strand of her loose blonde hair behind her ear and crossed her legs for the fiftieth time since she'd come into the room. Sophie was in her early forties but you couldn't tell that by looking at her. The first time Rachel laid eyes on her she thought the woman in her late twenties at best. Smart pretty and tastefully dressed the woman was a force of nature. Sophie was a manager's manager. She wanted to be kept in the loop about everything and Rachel was more than happy to oblige. Rachel had grown to trust her implicitly and Sophie always had a trick up her sleeve.

Today that trick had gone missing. When Sophie finally cursed to herself Rachel finally allowed herself to worry. Sophie was always in crisis but she never cursed.

"What happened?"

"Myra, is what happened. You're getting a new roommate ASAP. . She posted on Facebook about you. Did you know that? Rachel's GF is coming for a visit so I have to make myself scarce this weekend."

Rachel didn't see the harm. "So."

"So! Rachel this isn't just about Broadway anymore. This is your whole career. It's one thing to be a lesbian and not confirm it, A la Jodie Foster. It's another to be out. This girl has just outed you. It's already starting. Bill just sent me a text telling me to handle it."

Bill the record company guy was always calling it seemed. "This is New York Sophie nobody cares that I'm gay."

Sophie was out of her seat and closing the distance between them. "Rachel sweetheart it's not just about New York anymore. A recording contract is national. Downloads are international. Nobody cares on Broadway, there's an unwritten rule that nobody outs anybody else, but we're not just talking about Broadway anymore. And Myra just set us back. Whether she knows it or not nobody will ever trust her in this town. Everybody is reading what she wrote about you and nobody is ever going to share anything with her again. Between the two of us I'd be surprised if anybody ever hired her in this town. She'll make people uncomfortable forever. One Facebook post Rachel, that's all it takes, one mistake and its all over. That's the thin line we're dealing with."

Rachel didn't see the doom and gloom like Sophie did but she trusted her agent. "So what do we do now, I can have her try and take the post down?"

"Bill said handle it so I have to handle it. I have a car picking up Quinn and taking her to my apartment. From now on you two are never to be seen together in public."

"What? Quinn won't like that." Rachel knew Quinn would hate it. Even if she agreed with Sophie's opinion she'd hate being told what to do.

"Rachel this is about her as much as you. Those Upper East side Blue Bloods she's tight with will not be okay with her being gay. Their kids may be okay with it, but they won't be. And their parents are the ones holding the purse strings. I think you both should reevaluate what it is your doing. Sometimes hiding is okay. From now on when she wants to come see you the two of you can meet in my apartment. Nobody will bother you there, it's on the West side."

"Sophie," Rachel started to say.

"Rachel trust me. Once you're established we can loosen the strings a bit, but until then you have to do what you're told. You're under contract."

"Not yet, we haven't signed the deal with Bill's people yet."

Sophie reclaimed her seat and re-crossed her legs. "Yeah but you are going to do it. You know you want to. Broadway is the first stop on a long train. And even if you try recording and it doesn't work out the way you want it you can always come back to New York. There isn't a person in this business here who wouldn't take this shot. Trying and failing isn't a bad thing in New York, not even trying is toxic in this town Rachel. Nobody will respect you if you don't at least give it a shot. Barbra did it all, movies, Broadway, recording, all of it. So did Bette Midler. It's the smart play here Rachel."

"That's a cheap shot, bringing up Barbara."

Sophie began typing away on her Blackberry again. "Hey this is business. Win or go home. And you should call Quinn and tell her what's going on. I have a guy coming to escort you to dinner tonight. He plays on your team and he got the same speech from his agent this morning that I just gave you. Quinn may be upset seeing you with a boy so if you're smart you'll smooth it over before hand. But that's up to you. I'm an agent not Dr. Phil."

Rachel rolled her eyes. "Yeah, Dr. Phil has tact."

"Don't be mad at me, I said that I'd make you famous not that I'd fix your love life. You can be as miserable as the rest of us as far as I care."

* * *

"I don't understand," Quinn said as she looked around Sophie's apartment. "It's some post from some girl that nobody even knows. And you said she took it down. Now you have to move out and we have to go to DEFCON One."

"Quinn it's necessary. Sophie says."

"Who the hell is Sophie that she gets to make all the rules? I don't take orders from Sophies. Or from Rachels for that matter." Quinn was freaking out. Rachel had expected her to but there was something about actually seeing it first hand that always put her on edge. She expected to be called Man Hands or Treasure Trail at any moment.

"Quinn stop," Rachel said softly.

"And who the hell is this boy? Skuzzball part II?"

"Quinn it's just business, and not only that he's gay. I told you that."

Quinn shrugged and gave the room a closer look. "This is a really nice place." Her sour mood had seemed to dissipate right away. Knowing Quinn it would rear it's ugly head at the most inappropriate time.

"She makes a very comfortable living. She's always working though. Non stop."

"She gets to tell you what to do non stop too now huh. Must be nice."

"What is this about already? Did you come all the way down here to start a fight with me? I thought we were supposed to be having fun."

Quinn gave the room another look then offered Rachel one of her patented phony smiles. "We are having fun."

Rachel shook it off. Quinn was always doing this, as soon as things got a tad bit uncomfortable she went all Lima on her and shut down. It was a constant pain the butt and always causing a problem for them. She was always wondering if something she said or did would set Quinn off. It made her afraid to say anything most days.

"Fine, then let's have some fun. Put your bags in the back room and let's go cuddle."

"Maybe I don't want to cuddle," Quinn said defiantly.

"Great, if you decide to grow up anytime tonight I'll be in the back bedroom."

* * *

Rachel felt Quinn's hand slip through her hair and she forced herself not to scoot away. The constant fighting was getting old fast. The last thing she wanted to do was spend half of their time together bickering about nonsense but Quinn seemed insistent on fighting with her about every single thing.

Instead of fighting against Quinn's touch Rachel rolled over and opened her eyes taking the girl in her sights. She was red eyed as if she'd been crying but there were no tears. She closed her eyes instead of comforting her and forced her mind to shut off. She could use the release, she'd missed Quinn so much but now more than anything she missed her touch. They'd talk tomorrow. Tomorrow was another day.

Week 23

Quinn-Yale

"A record deal? Like a real record deal?" Jules asked.

Quinn nodded with a smile doing her best not to show her annoyance. A record deal. A freaking record deal. It was like Rachel had forgotten the whole reason she'd gone to New York in the first place. Getting famous so she'd have an easier time finding work and making a living was one thing. Getting a record deal was another. How was she supposed to take on Broadway from MTV studios?

"Yeah, it's really exciting. I mean most of us don't have a billion dollar empire to fall back on."

Jules didn't take offense. She hadn't been taking offense for months now, no matter how hard Quinn prodded the girl was cool as ice. It was almost as if she'd become immune to Quinn's surly demeanor. The same thing had happened to Santana and Brittany back in Lima. The whole Glee club in fact had learned to ignore her mood swings. As a result Quinn knew she could get away with being a little nicer to the girl. As long as she threw in a verbal barb here and there Jules didn't seem to want to make waves.

"Well you should get her something nice like flowers or something. Or plan something romantic as a surprise. She'd like that."

It was good advice but Quinn wasn't about to let Jules tell her what to do. "Thanks but I don't think I'm going to be taking advice about romance from a girl dating a gay guy."

Jules simply stared at her with a raised eyebrow. "Okay what don't I know?"

Quinn laughed. "I can fill a library with the things you don't know."

Jules ignored her. "Are you guys fighting again? God you two fight more than my mom and my dad's mistress."

Quinn wasn't sure if that was a joke or not but she laughed. "Your dad has a mistress?"

Jules shrugged. "Of course," she said as if it were the most normal thing in the world.

"And your mom knows. Why doesn't she divorce him?"

Jules laughed. "Are you kidding? My mom isn't going to leave daddy. Why would she? She doesn't care that he has a girlfriend. She told me most guys cheat anyway it's better that they keep things somewhat civil and organized."

Quinn couldn't believe her ears. Her mother had been heartbroken when she found out about her father's affair. She'd done everything a good wife was supposed to do in her mind and yet he still strayed. She took this as a fault in his DNA instead of her own self worth. That's why Quinn was so surprised when she'd taken him back. It was a betrayal of everything she'd been taught.

"I thought you said they fight all the time," Quinn questioned.

Jules laughed. "Not over HIM. My mom lives in Burbank, my dad's girlfriend lives in New York, they never have to see each other. They fight over silly things like who gets to buy what Chanel bag and who gets what week of vacation in July. They call each other names and bicker but they actually like one another. Although neither will admit it."

Quinn's mind was going to explode but instead of asking another question her phone rang. Rachel's call.

"Hey."

"Hey you. I just got a few minutes so I thought I'd call. What are you up to?"

"Talking to Roommate about her dad's mistress."

"So the show's going well. I finish my run in a couple of days and I move on to the next thing. I have to meet with a producer about a song."

Supportive. Be supportive. "That's great Rachel."

Rachel apparently didn't think it was so great. "That's the thing. It's in California."

"California? You're going to California now?"

"Quinn it's for my career."

Quinn sighed. "I know. Good luck I guess."

Rachel sighed this time. "You know what maybe we should talk later."

Quinn didn't have the strength to argue today. "If you don't want to talk to me you don't have to pick a fight. I'll call you next weekend."

"Fine. I love you."

Quinn let herself chuckle. "Are you sure?"

Rachel scoffed. "Of course I'm sure, now stop fighting with me and tell me about your week."

"I thought you were hanging up on me."

"Well I changed my mind. We'll talk about California on Monday but for now let's talk about you. Tell me what's going on with Quinn."

"Rick wrote a feature about me in the school magazine. People to know. Half the school is trying to get to know me."

Rachel laughed. "They have their work cut out for them."

**Is it me or are the relationships that give you the most personal growth the ones that annoy you so much that you often consider throwing them away because they're so much work? I don't think poor Rachel and Quinn realize how very good they are for one another. It's funny, great things happen for them when they're together but they're both too blind to see it. Since this story is ending soon (Yeah I know it may feel abrupt but if you've read my stories before you know I tend to do that) let's see if we can give them some personal growth. Of course it won't come easy but let's face it, if love was easy everybody would have it!**


	11. Chapter 11

Week 24

Rachel-California

Rachel stared out at the pool and did her best to shake off the feeling in the pit of her stomach. The sun was still shining and the first time in a week she felt like she was in the wrong place. New York had been her dream for so many years. Broadway. Being on that stage, taking her final bow, it had felt like she'd finally arrived. It was a small part in a forgettable play but it was Broadway. Her dream come true. If everything fell apart this very minute the memory of that short stint would be enough to sustain her for the rest of her life.

California had never been part of the dream. California was a different dream. Movies and records. She'd never wanted to be famous, she wanted to be a Broadway star. Most civilians couldn't name any Broadway stars without looking them up online. It wasn't like being a movie star or a pop star. Broadway was an entertainment specialization. It was less ritzy and glamorous but definitely a respectable profession. Most Hollywood big shots didn't have the chops to pull it off. Rachel had been given two sentences in a big shot Broadway critic's blog and according to Sophie it was the equivalency of being given an official stamp of approval.

Being in California was a lifetime away from Broadway but it was still thrilling. Her first few nights in town she spent working on the song she'd come to town for. Afterwards she'd spent a few days going on a few auditions. Nothing seemed like it would pan out but by the third or fourth one she had the process down pat. When she was ready to get serious she would look like an old pro.

She hadn't spoken to Quinn since she'd left New York. They'd sent texts back and forth but they hadn't actually spoken. Quinn was being difficult about all of this. She'd said everything was great with her phony smile and polite words but Rachel knew she didn't mean it. She didn't see the point of all of this. She was supportive, about Broadway, the rest of it simply seemed to confuse and annoy her. Rachel had finally gotten tired of justifying herself and had started to change the subject when it came up. Lately things had been tense, really tense.

They were fighting a lot these days. Every time they spoke to one another it seemed to cause a stir between them. Somebody was always angry about something. Quinn was notoriously frustrating and immature at times and Rachel knew she wasn't always a prize herself. She was selfish and petty at times, but what was she supposed to do she was trying to make a career for herself? Quinn should understand and be a bit more supportive.

It was during that thought that her phone rang.

"Hello."

"Rachel," Quinn said excited. It seemed like forever since Quinn had been excited to speak to her.

"You're in a good mood." Rachel said with an enthusiasm of her own. Hearing Quinn happy always made her happy. Her smile made it easy to love her and even though she couldn't see her right now she could see the smile in her head. It was burned into her brain for all time.

"Of course I am. I just got invited to join a club."

Rachel laughed, leave it to Quinn to get excited about something so trivial. "What kind of club?"

"A social club. You know parties and stuff."

That didn't sound THAT exciting. Quinn had always been popular, she'd managed to make a way for herself in high school and in college. Getting chosen to join some sort of college club was simply part of what made her Quinn.

"And it's good to be a member?"

Quinn laughed. "It's very good. This club is the first step to joining another club, then another, and another. If I don't mess it up it should be like a ladder. To use a cheesy cheerleader reference I just made the squad but I'm on the bottom of the pyramid. Next year I move up, junior year I move up more, and senior year if I have the right stuff I'm at the top. And being at the top of this pyramid is very good Rachel."

Rachel was intrigued. "Really what's the name of this club? The last rung of your ladder?"

"That's the tricky part. I can't talk to you about it. What I can say is if you look up information on the internet about Yale's secret clubs you'll learn how important it is to my future. I'm just not allowed to talk about it. As a matter of fact this is the only time I can mention it. I was told I could clue one person in and I chose you. So from time to time I won't be around, I'll be out doing stuff that I can't talk to you about. I'm telling you so you don't think I'm out screwing around with some other girl."

Rachel laughed. The thought that Quinn would fool around hadn't even occurred to her until she'd said it. Of course the girl had options, she was beautiful and popular and according to Carol making a name for herself on campus. "So you're asking my permission to keep secrets."

"I suppose."

This sounded like a strange thing. Even for rich college kids it sounded like trouble. Secret clubs. All she could think about was that movie the Skulls where they kidnapped each other and put kids in coffins and somebody ended up getting themselves shot.

"Well it's fine with me if you think it'll help but I think it sounds a bit cagey."

Quinn laughed. "Says the girl in California being a movie star."

"Touché."

She didn't spend any time gloating. "So tell me about California."

Rachel took the cue and decided to move on. "California is okay. I worked on the song, it turned out okay. I hadn't heard of the producer before but Sophie says he's good and he's the it guy. He saw my video and he wanted to work with me. He's doing an album of some old blues songs."

"Are you a blues singer now?" Quinn asked. "I didn't think that was your sound."

"I'm a soprano, I can sing almost anything well. It's not my specialty but it's a foot in the door. I can sing anything for a little while, even something not exactly my cup of tea."

Quinn sat quietly on the other end of the phone. She broke her silence with platitudes.

"Well that sounds interesting. I hope it's a big hit."

"Are you angry again?"

Quinn answered quickly and without emotion. "I'm not angry. Why would you think I'm angry?"

"No reason. Just asking."

She didn't speak, she smacked her lips instead. "Well I have to admit that I miss you, how long before you come home?"

"I'm not sure, probably a few days. I went on a few auditions and Sophie thinks we should hang around for at least two days in case I get a call back. I won't, but who knows."

"You're stopping by next weekend then right?"

A weekend trip to New Haven was out of the question. Sophie expressly forbid her from going down to visit Quinn. New Haven was one of the largest cities in Connecticut but it wasn't New York. It was much harder to disappear. Rachel couldn't imagine anybody would be paying attention but she wasn't going to take any chances. Her ex-roommate Myra had made a fatal mistake that according to the faculty would ensure she was teaching high school drama after graduation. Myra was sure she had enough time to turn it all around but Rachel thought it was just optimism and wishful thinking. The consensus was that she'd dug a hole much too deep to ever climb out of.

"Quinn you know I can't do that. You can come back up to New York though."

Silence.

"Quinn."

"Rachel I can't leave this weekend. I have a thing with the play Saturday morning."

Rachel wanted to protest, to tell her to blow it off but she was in California chasing her career. How could she tell Quinn not to take her play seriously. It was hypocritical. Not only that but it would surely start a fight.

"So what we don't get to see each other? It's been three weeks." Rachel asked.

"What do you want me to do, I can't leave? It was your weekend to come to me. I make all my trips up to New York don't I?"

She wanted to argue that point but she couldn't. It was true, Quinn never missed a trip. Nothing ever got in the way of them seeing each other when it was her turn to make the visit. Quinn may have been cold and distant but she couldn't be accused of not putting Rachel first.

"Okay, I'll try and work it out."

"Good, I'll look forward to seeing you. But until then talk to me about those auditions."

I'll look forward to seeing you? Was she serious? Instead of fighting again Rachel started blabbing about her trip. Her auditions, the song all of it. She talked for twenty minutes and it almost felt as if everything were back to normal.

Week 25

Quinn-Yale/Wednesday

"So what time is Rachel coming down on Friday? It's her week right?" Jeff asked over his cup of coffee.

Quinn shrugged. "She's not going to show up. I put her on the spot last weekend, told her she was going to have to show up because I couldn't make it up to New York to be her dirty little secret. She said she'd work it out but she won't. She'll listen to her agent who doesn't want us to see each other."

"Why didn't you just go up? It's obvious you want to see her. Are you going to let your ego ruin everything?" Jeff asked. There was no judgment in his voice, only curiosity.

"The hell with going up there. She's focused on her career. I'm not going to be that girl sitting around trying to be supportive while she travels the world making money and getting famous. I've got my own life to live."

Jeff sipped on his coffee and Quinn found herself wondering how he could be so cool. He never seemed to budge emotionally. He was incredibly hard to read. He wasn't judgmental and didn't voice disapproval over anything. All he did was ask questions. Sure they were pointed questions but there was never any accusations behind them. It was almost as if he was just curious, it made you want to tell him everything.

He looked across the table at her, his handsome smile returning. "You sound like you've decided that it's over."

She shrugged. "Maybe I have."

"So you've already made up your mind then?"

Quinn shrugged. "I'm pretty sure I have."

He arched an eyebrow. "Pretty sure? Not all the way?"

She shrugged again. "I'm 87% sure."

He laughed, "87%, not 72 or 94."

"There's doubt but what can I do, sit around and wait for her to show me the attention I want. Am I supposed to ask her to put me first? Am I supposed to tell her that I love her and THAT should be more important than some recording contract?"

Jeff nodded. "Why not? If you're going to end it anyway may as well tell her why."

"She knows why."

How could Rachel not know why things were over? She was given a choice, sure it wasn't exactly an ultimatum but Rachel should have known what it meant. If you say you're going to do something you should stick with it. Rachel said she was going to come so she should come. If she doesn't then that's a sign that things are over. Over and done with.

"Well if you're finished with her there's a party we have to hit up. No need in sitting around feeling sorry for ourselves."

Rachel-California/Friday

Rachel heard her phone ringing, blaring actually and forced her mind to shut itself down. Her phone had been ringing for an hour and she'd been doing her best to ignore it. Sophie insisted she ignore it and had gone so far as to confiscate it and shove it in her purse. It hadn't helped much because the phone simply kept ringing.

"Will you answer it already?" Rachel yelled. "I know you want me to focus but I can't do that with that darn phone ringing every five minutes."

Sophie let out a frustrated breath but dug the phone out of her purse. "You just focus on this audition. I had to pull a lot of strings to make this happen and I don't want you to blow it."

Rachel rolled her eyes as the phone blared once again. "Just answer that."

Sophie hit a button and slipped the phone up to her ear. "Hello, Rachel's phone."

Rachel watched as her agent stared across the room blank faced. She nodded occasionally but didn't show any hint of emotion.

"Is everybody okay?" She asked.

Rachel watched her nod and wondered if everything was okay. Sophie had a one track mind but she didn't seem to be the least bit concerned.

"So they're both fine," she said before rolling her eyes. "Okay well I'll pass that along but she's about to hit a really big audition so we have to go but I promise as soon as it's over I'll pass it along."

Sophie nodded along still not showing any emotion. "Thank you too," she said with a smile then ended the call.

"What accident?" Rachel asked.

Sophie glared. "You have lines to learn Rachel, come on this is TV, cable TV where the producers guarantee me that you'll never have to take your top off. There's singing and acting."

"I'd play a water nymph." Rachel said with annoyance. She wasn't sure exactly what a water nymph was but it sure sounded like something where she'd eventually be asked to take her shirt off.

"A siren. A siren is not a water nymph. It's on the water but there's nothing nymphy about it."

"It sounds pretty nymphy," Rachel replied skeptically.

"They swore there was no nudity. It's cable but it's not HBO. Besides you have to show a little bit of booty sometimes."

Rachel couldn't help but laugh at that. A little bit of booty? That was surely the first thing any sleazy producer told a young actress. She'd heard a half a dozen suggestive lines already. She'd also gotten several offers from people willing to 'show her the ropes'. This town was something else. It was full of perverts, weirdo's and sleazy old men.

"So the accident, somebody got hurt?"

Sophie shook her head. "Don't worry about that. Learn the song and the lines, we leave in twenty minutes."

Rachel nodded. "Is it almost noon, I have to call Quinn and tell her I'm not coming home this weekend?"

Sophie shook her head. "Don't worry about that either. That was Carol, Quinn's busy. She'll probably be busy all day."

Busy? Busy doing what? They had plans for tonight. How could Quinn just decide she was going to be busy at the last minute. And who was that on the phone? Carol? Why was Carol calling her giving her messages from Quinn? Why didn't Quinn call and speak to her personally? Since when did she take Sophie's word for anything?

"What do you mean she's going to be busy? Busy doing what?"

"Rachel we'll go over this later." Sophie said sternly. "For now learn those lines and get that song down. If this goes well it's two episodes on TV minimum."

"Don't you think this is all happening a little fast Sophie? Most girls have to slush it out for months, or years trying to make it. I'm flying through this like the flying nun."

Sophie rose to her feet and laughed. "The flying nun. It's great that you even know what that is. You just get ready and don't worry about how fast you're flying through this. It's a good thing. Talent always wins out and you're talented. If you're worried about this simply being your fifteen minutes consider the many role models set before you. Paris Hilton, Kim Kardashian, Snooki. They turned fifteen minutes into a career."

Rachel didn't have the presence of mind to argue. How had she gone from Brittney, Madonna and Ashton Kutcher to Paris, Kim Kardashian and Snooki? Quinn's examples had inspired her, Sophie's made her feel like some reality TV reject looking to marry a stranger for publicity.

She'd have to call Quinn later. Something was wrong. Their last few phone calls had been cold and robotic. They hadn't fought but they felt distant, like they were millions of miles away from one another. It had never been that way before. Before their conversations were like magic. Quinn knew what she was thinking even before she'd said it. Now it was like they were simply being polite to one another. She had to find out what was wrong so she could fix it. As soon as this audition was over she'd get a good night's rest and fly out to New Haven to see her in the morning. Maybe they could salvage this thing.

Rachel-Yale/Saturday

Rachel spotted Carol the second she stepped into the room. There was ice in the girl's gaze and for the first time since Rachel had last seen Pete she could feel hatred in a gaze. Carol closed the distance between them in what felt like seconds and gave Rachel a hard poke in the chest.

"Are you serious? You show up NOW. Now that everything is fine."

She opened her mouth to speak but Carol poked her hard again.

"You're totally out of control. An audition? That's what was more important than your girlfriend. She needed you Rachel."

"I didn't know. Sophie never told me. I swear to God."

Carol simply took a few steps backwards. "You swear to God what? That you would have hopped on the next plane and sat by her side."

"Yes." Rachel hadn't heard about the accident until Sophie had given her her cell phone back this morning. She'd had nearly thirty calls from Carol, Jules, Dustin and other girls telling her about Jeff and Quinn's car accident. When she'd heard about it her heart nearly stopped. She jumped in a cab and flew right out. Still by the time she made it to the hospital nearly 24 hours had passed.

"How is she?" Rachel asked.

Carol crossed her arms on her chest and stared.

"Carol please."

She sighed but it wasn't calming, it was angry, heavy breaths and flaring nostrils. "Jeff was driving and a sixteen year old girl on her cell phone blew a red light and nearly killed them both. Jeff broke his arm and leg and Quinn has a concussion."

Rachel sighed. Quinn hadn't answered any of her calls today so she had no idea if she were okay or not. She'd flown out without hearing anything from anybody. Nobody was returning her phone calls, she didn't even know how serious the accident was. It was nice to hear she was okay.

"So she's okay?"

Carol shook her head. "No, she's not okay. After the accident she was totally out of it. She got out of the car and started walking. She said she was going to go get band-aids for Jeff's leg. She was totally inconsolable, like a robot. Jeff was scared to death she was going to drop dead or walk out into traffic. The cops finally found her three blocks away sitting on the curb. They called an ambulance and she refused to get into it because she thought they'd get in another accident. They finally had to sedate her."

"She's weird about accidents since her last car accident. She gets freaked out."

Carol nodded sarcastically. "Yeah. Then something's wrong with her foot, she said it was numb."

"That doesn't sound good, I'm going to go up and see her."

Carol shook her head. "She doesn't want to see you."

Rachel couldn't believe that. Of course Quinn wanted to see her. Why wouldn't she want to see her? This whole thing was a misunderstanding after all. It wasn't like she was purposely trying to avoid coming to see her in the hospital. She had to understand.

"I'm going up."

"Rachel her father's up there. She isn't going to want to talk to you with him right there."

That was bad news. Of course her father was here. Why wouldn't he fly on out to play the concerned father at a time like this? If he was sitting at her side Rachel knew she'd never get an honest conversation out of her. She needed a distraction, something to get him out of the room while she spoke to Quinn.

"Do me a favor and come up with me."

Carol watched her with a squint. "Why should I help you Rachel? I thought we were friends and you totally blow us all off so you can flit around Hollywood. Your girlfriend nearly gets killed and you don't even come back from your big audition to see if she's okay. I have enough fair weather friends in my life."

Ouch. "Carol I'm not a fair weather friend. I didn't know what was going on, Sophie never told me. As soon as I found out I got on a plane."

"She didn't tell you that the girl you're in love with was in a major car wreck? Because I told her it was really serious. I told her Quinn was hysterical and that you needed to come home right away. She didn't tell you any of that?"

All Rachel could do was shake her head. "She didn't mention it. It was a big audition."

"And that doesn't bother you at all? That she didn't tell you?" Carol asked. "Because if it doesn't that's probably why Quinn isn't going to see you." She sighed again, this time with more sympathy than frustration. "Fine, if you insist on going up I'll go with you and I'll hold your hand when she tosses you out on your ass. But believe me when I say that if you ever do something like this again I will never forgive you."

Rachel nodded quickly. "Understood."

* * *

Quinn forced herself to smile when Rachel stepped into the room. How dare she show her face here now. Now, after a full day of her being here she shows up all pitiful and worried. Quinn only smiled, she wasn't going to do this anymore. She wasn't going to be Rachel's safety net. She had refused to let Finn go until things got so tense she'd finally cheated on him and broke his heart into a million pieces. Rachel had turned around and done the same thing to him now. The poor boy would probably never trust a woman again and she knew that was partly her fault. She had to let this end while they were on good terms.

Brittany was right. If she wanted to salvage any sort of relationship with Rachel she had to do something. She had to find a way to keep them from hurting each other and hating each other for the rest of their lives. She had to end it. It would be painful but it was for the best. There was no way this was going to work. Rachel needed to be free to chase her dreams and Quinn wasn't going to be the anchor tied to her back that Brittany spoke about.

"Hello," Rachel said. She hadn't bothered to smile. There was nothing to smile about.

"My dad's around Rachel." Quinn said hoping the threat of being caught would make this whole thing less messy.

"Carol is introducing him to Jeff's dad. We have some time."

Quinn cleared her throat and steeled her nerves.

"Rachel we have to talk."

Rachel shook her head. "No we don't. We don't have to talk."

Quinn could hear fear in her voice. Rachel knew what was coming and she wanted to avoid it. Quinn's nerve suddenly began to wither like a grape on a vine. Could she do this? Could she break up with Rachel? She loved Rachel. But she had to. She had to end it to save it. And maybe one day, one day long away from now they could find it again.

"Rachel we do, we have to talk. It's time."

She was still shaking her head defiantly. "No we don't Quinn. It's not time. It was a mistake, a mistake that will never happen again. It was a misunderstanding, a huge misunderstanding and it won't ever happen again."

Quinn wanted to go cold, going cold would make this all easier but she couldn't do that to Rachel. Being an ice queen wouldn't do anything but hurt Rachel's feelings, give her the impression that she didn't care, and she wanted Rachel to know that she cared.

"Rachel you need to be free. You need to be free to go to Hollywood and go on auditions and make songs with famous producers. You can't be tied here to me anymore. I want to be with you, I do and I know that you want to be with me but it's not our time. It's not going to work."

She started to nod. "It is our time. We can make it work." She finally closed the distance between them, wrapping Quinn's hands in hers as she took the empty chair beside the bed as her own. "We love each other, you love me, I know you do. You can't pretend that you don't."

She forced herself to be strong, any wavering would only postpone the inevitable. "Rachel of course I love you. I want to be with you more than anything but if we stay together now we're going to hate each other and it won't last and I want it to last forever."

"It will. It'll last forever. I won't listen to Sophie anymore. We can continue our phone calls and our visits and things will go back to normal."

"Rachel you're bigger than this. Train rides to visit me in New Haven? It's silly. You flew in from Hollywood for Christ's sake. It's only been a few months and you're already so close to making all your dreams come true. If I don't let you go after them you're going to hate me. You're going to hate me and we'll have a nasty break up."

Rachel leaned in and kissed her quickly and softly on the lips. "Tell me you don't want to be with me anymore. Tell me you're mad at me, or that you don't love me. Tell me anything but that my career is going to get in the way. I won't let it. I won't ever put you second Quinn. This was a mistake. Sophie didn't tell me you were in the hospital. I didn't find out until this morning. If she had I would have come, I would have put you before my career."

Quinn hadn't known that Rachel hadn't heard about the accident but in the end it didn't change anything. Rachel shouldn't have to choose. If she chose Quinn and relegated herself to strictly doing Broadway shows one day she'd eventually hate herself for not taking the chance. And maybe that hate would transfer over to Quinn.

"You shouldn't have to choose Rachel. That's the whole point. I love you too much to make you hurt like this. I can't hold you back."

"You're not holding me back. I love you."

"I may not be holding you back now, but I will one day. I need attention Rachel, attention you can't give me right now. It's not your fault. You've never lied to me. You've always been Rachel Berry, I just convinced myself that you weren't."

She looked like she wanted to argue the point but didn't know how. Instead she kissed her again. "Let's take some more time alone. Another few days alone. We can close ourselves up in a hotel and fix this."

The door to the room opened and Quinn watched her mother step in. She gave Rachel a curious glance but didn't look as surprised to see her as Quinn expected. Quinn smiled and turned on the façade that had become a second skin to her.

"Thank you for coming Rachel, you're really sweet." Quinn said.

Rachel's mouth opened to say something but Quinn's mother touched her shoulder briefly. "Quinn your father's coming," she said as they met one another's gaze. She looked down at Rachel next and shook her head. "Sweetheart you should leave. He's been in a mood today."

"Quinn I want you to call me," Rachel finally said.

Quinn nodded. "Of course."

The words were so rehearsed, so cold, Rachel surely knew they weren't true. Something in her gaze softened and her face tightened. "Goodbye Quinn."

"Thank you for everything Rachel. I wish you all the best and I'll always look out for you. If you ever need anything call."

Rachel was on her feet quickly and rushing out of the room. Quinn watched her go and briefly considered chasing her but knew it would be a mistake. Instead she forced her mind shut and switched gears.

"Did you find one I'd like mom?"

"No but I saw a catalog at the Nurse's station. They have a bunch of really good ones you can order. Anything you want. We'll get you a temporary one until then."

Quinn put on her plastered smile and nodded. "Thanks mom."

Her mother looked towards the door. "Is everything alright there?"

"It's fine. Rachel's going to be a star. I wished her well, it's time she devoted all her attention to her career."

Her mother nodded. "Are you okay with that?"

Quinn shrugged. "Sure. Why wouldn't I be okay with it?"

Her mother stared then dug the magazine out of her purse. "Let's have a look then, we'll find you something really nice."

**Okay. One more chapter. Now let me say, typically I don't cave to pressure but it seems the tone of this story seemed to shift to the point where most of you became unhappy with the direction it was going. It appears I forgot to label it angst and under those circumstances I feel I owe you a nice beautiful bow. Of course I'm incapable of doing that in a normal way so with a little bit of altering along the way I've found a nice bookend to this wonderful tale that I have to admit became a bit of a labor of love for me after the Thanksgiving chapters. I wouldn't imagine you would much care about this but note I do appreciate your frustration. Be warned, next chapter will throw you a curve but I didn't see any other way to make things mesh story wise. **


	12. Chapter 12

Week 537

Rachel/Quinn-New York

Rachel climbed out of the limo and ignored it all. The photographers, the screaming fans, the reporters shouting questions. It was all just noise at this point, background music in the soundtrack that was her life. She'd grown accustomed to it, then bored by it, then down right hostile to it when it began to invade what little privacy she had left. It didn't take much, a photo while she was trying to have dinner, a well placed camera while she was getting out of her limo, and presto, she was annoyed. Fame had always been a dream of hers but it hadn't taken long for her opinion to change, the thrill of superstardom wore off relatively quickly.

Now there was this. Now she was being hauled into court to be asked questions about something she didn't even remember she was involved in. She knew the company of course, who didn't, Gecko was one of the largest online businesses on the planet. The problem was she couldn't remember anything about how it was started, and wasn't sure what she was expected to contribute to the court case. She didn't know any more about computers than anyone else and surely didn't know anything about Gecko's intellectual property deals. She saw the company's owner on TV all the time, and he looked familiar, but Rachel had met thousands of people. Everybody looked familiar. If she had known Oliver Van Trypp was going to start a billion dollar company she'd have surely invested in it. If she had she'd likely be a billionaire by now.

Instead of posing for the cameras she hid behind her shades, tightened her designer jacket and hustled inside, her team of handlers at her side, her agent Sophie bringing up the rear. Her most trusted traveling companion held a special place at her side, she'd known the girl seemingly forever. Brittany S. Pierce. It hadn't actually been forever though. They'd only known one another since high school. High school had ended over ten years ago but it felt like a hundred years. A lifetime ago. Brittany always traveled with her when Santana was busy taping her TV show. She hated being home alone while her wife worked thirteen and fourteen hour days six days a week. Since she'd lost her trusted companion Lord Tubbington she'd taken to spending time with Rachel. Brittany was officially one of Rachel's back up dancers but since she hadn't recorded in forever she often found an excuse to bring her along. Some empty but essential task she could pretend to need done. Of course her and Santana didn't need the money, a hit TV show paid well, but Brittany needed to be kept busy. Besides it was nice to have somebody around who wasn't simply there for the paycheck.

"I had a gecko once but a Coyote ate him," Brittany said almost offhand. Rachel turned and gave the girl a curious gaze but didn't bother asking what she meant. She knew better.

"This is a different Gecko, it's that internet company," Rachel said as she stepped through the courthouse doors. A group of police officers manning a metal detector waved her over allowing her to jump to the front of a huge line. None of the people waiting blinked. Rachel flashed them a wave and a smile and kept on walking. Her mere presence in the building was probably the most excitement most of them would get all day.

After making it through security Rachel's entourage took the elevator upstairs to the fifth floor. The place was packed with stuffy people in suits and for once Rachel's presence almost seemed to go unnoticed. Almost. She got a few stares but places like this were much too stuffy for visible excitement. Ego's and reputations were her best friend these days. People like this would never be seen falling all over themselves to meet some movie star.

Her heels clicked off the floor echoing noisily down the hall drawing stares and whispers. She sat down on a bench outside the closed courtroom doors and waited. She closed her eyes and tried to meditate but couldn't focus. She considered moving until she caught the tail end of a conversation a few feet away.

An older man in a black suit and a distinguished looking blue tie was speaking to two people young enough to be his children. A blonde man with a cheap suit, an even cheaper haircut, and a brunette woman with a familiar face. She was pretty with dimpled cheeks, blue eyes and a smile Rachel thought she knew from someplace.

"I've never even heard of this woman. Why are we getting so bent out of shape?" The young man was holding a worn leather briefcase and Rachel figured him for a lawyer right off the bat. He looked a bit annoyed but in the way guys did when they were trying to pretend to be confident.

"Just do what I'm telling you Chris. Ask her the questions but don't get cute with her, it would be a mistake." The elder statesman said sternly.

"I could destroy this woman Bill. Her Bio says she's from Ohio. I saw her downstairs she looked like a librarian." The young lawyer was insistent but Bill, the older man, simply shook his head.

"Chris do yourself a favor and listen to me. Do not under any circumstances try and get cute with this witness. She may not look like much but she's connected. She put this deal together and had our client sign over his intellectual property rights at the ripe young age of eighteen. We're talking about hundreds of millions of dollars he should be entitled to. She did all of this while she was a freshman in college. And now she's a lawyer. She graduated Summa Cumme Laude from Yale and graduated in the top of her class from Yale Law. She's smarter and more ruthless than anybody you're ever going to meet. Not to mention twice the lawyer you'll ever be."

Rachel smiled as Chris' eyebrows arched. His confident annoyance fading away. "She's a lawyer?"

"Don't let the sweet smile and the Sunday sweater fool you Chris, Quinn Fabray is Darth fucking Vader. I don't have time to run down her whole life story for you but she is not somebody you want to trifle with. This is the same woman who threw her own father out on the street. She may look like a suburban soccer mom but you don't become a billionaire at 28 by being a push over. If you annoy her she's got the kind of juice that could ruin your life. Governors, Senators, Congressmen, she knows everybody and everybody owes her a favor," Bill said.

"She's a member of Skull and Bones. That secret thing at Yale. They churn out Presidents like they come off an assembly line," the female lawyer said with a icy tone. "My cousin Elise was at that very first Thanksgiving party they hold every year. Quinn organized the whole thing. If you'd have bothered to do some research besides her Wikipedia page you'd have seen her name's on the founders list of the Young Bulldog Society. Every year for the past ten years they have that week long conference in New Haven. Only the future movers and shakers are invited, you should see the list of people who's passed through those things."

Rachel's mind clicked. Elise, this girl was cousin to Carol's friend Elise. And not only that they were talking about Quinn. It seemed her reputation as an evil bitch bent on world domination had stuck. These lawyers were scared to death of her.

"Excuse me," Rachel said interrupting. "Sorry to interrupt but did you say Quinn Fabray is here?"

"Holy shit," the young male lawyer said finally realizing her presence. "Rachel Berry."

Rachel smiled. Everybody seemed to do that when they met her. It was one of the things that never got old. The surprise and excitement of seeing her up close. Usually it was followed by a line, I'm a huge fan. I loved you in…. The female lawyer however didn't let it get that far.

The lady lawyer pointed at Rachel with a smile. "She was at the YBS weekend when Gecko was started. The very first one. Before she became famous. I told you it's a big deal Chris. Do your research."

A light bulb went off in Rachel's brain. Gecko, the computer company thing Quinn had been talking about back then. That's where she knew that Oliver guy from. She'd seen him a million times on TV and had never been able to place him. He was the startup boy Quinn was friends with. He was one of the richest men in the world now, top ten on the Forbes list.

"Uh, yeah, Quinn's around." Chris said.

Brittany's eyes lit up. "I haven't seen Quinn in forever, let's go find her Rachel." Over Brittany's shoulder Rachel saw Sophie's face go white. She avoided speaking about Quinn at all costs it seemed.

"Rachel I need to make some calls," Sophie said before excusing herself. Rachel smiled to herself. Sophie may not want to see Quinn but SHE did.

It had been ten years since Rachel had seen her. She'd caught glimpses of her over the years, seen her picture on TV and in the magazines. Occasionally Carol would show her a photo and Quinn would be standing there, her cane in her hand looking as beautiful as the day Rachel had seen her last in the hospital. She'd regretted leaving that day. She should have stuck around and fought for her. Quinn had needed her and she'd abandoned her to run off and get rich and famous. It was a crappy trade off.

"Any idea where she is?" Rachel asked.

* * *

Quinn looked across the crowded hallway and did her best to pretend like everyone wasn't staring at her. Everyone always stared. She wasn't sure why, it's not like she had devil horns and a red leather jumpsuit. She didn't have mole's and warts on face like a witch. None of that mattered though, every time she showed up someplace once people found out who she was they stared. It never changed.

"Did you get the invitation to Jenna's wedding?" Jeff asked. Jeff HAD changed. He'd dyed his hair dark and always wore a suit. He looked like a model, still handsome and well maintained but he wasn't the same laid back boy she'd met at Yale. He was much more high strung these days. He was intent on looking like a politician even though Quinn knew he'd never bother running for office.

"I got it. I can't believe she's going to go through with this wedding. As if nobody knows she's a lesbian. It's totally crazy. And that husband of hers I heard he's a cross dresser or something."

Jeff laughed. "He is not. Elise is telling people that because she's still bitter about the breakup."

Quinn rolled her eyes. Jenna and Elise had broken up years ago. Elise had even moved on to a much more serious and adult relationship with a woman. She still hadn't come out to her parents, she probably never would, but it was no big secret her roommate was actually her girlfriend. Of course the fact that her roommate was an Orthopedic surgeon who had no need to share the rent with some Upper East Side society girl like Elise was a dead give away. Quinn had met Dr. Graf a few times and found the woman an intellectually superior version of Jenna. Beautiful, well maintained and totally butch.

"Did you see Wick?" Quinn asked. Rick Wick had come to the courthouse looking like he'd just crawled out of bed. Breath smelling of booze with a blonde on his arm that looked as if she cost a fortune. Quinn didn't know when the guy had started seeing call girls but he didn't even bother trying to hide it these days.

Jeff nodded slowly. "I saw him, I think we may have to have an intervention or something. I tried talking to him but he doesn't think there's a problem because the company's running like clockwork and his news division is thriving."

Quinn only shrugged. You couldn't help people who didn't want to help themselves, she knew that. She liked Rick, loved him like a brother almost but the kid was a lost cause until he wanted to settle down. Still refusing to help would make her look like the monster everyone thought she was.

"Fine by me."

Jeff glanced over at her then arched an eyebrow. "I spoke to your dad the other day. He stopped by the office." Quinn and Jeff shared office space in Manhattan but neither actually did anything with it but take meetings. They kept a receptionist on staff to take messages and answer phones but the likelihood of finding either of them there was slim.

Quinn nodded.

"He wants to see you."

Quinn had no intention of speaking to her father. Ever since she'd stopped being afraid of him and what he'd think she'd felt so free. His judgment, watchful eye, and mean comments had held her back her entire life. The second she'd brought a woman home for her mother to meet she knew her father would raise a stink. He'd started in on her the second she sat down for dinner that night and Quinn calmly and coolly called her security team to have him escorted out of her Penthouse. One of the perks of having her parents living under HER roof was that they couldn't kick her out again. Her father left her home under escort and in shock but to Quinn's delight her mother never got up from the dinner table. She continued on with her meal as if nothing at all had happened. The next day she asked Quinn for a referral for a good divorce attorney so she could divorce Russell for the second time.

Quinn may have tossed him out on the street but her father hadn't been homeless like she'd been. It had been more symbolic than anything. Her father was a wealthy man, no where as rich as Quinn but money wouldn't be an issue for him and finding a new home hadn't been hard either. Her mother would be entitled to half of his fortune and Quinn knew her father, he'd surely try to find a way to screw her over again. Quinn wasn't going to let that happen and even if it did her mother lived with her and could stay forever as far as she was concerned. She wanted for nothing.

"I don't want to see him," was all she said. She had nothing else to say to her father. Calling her a disgusting queer had been the last straw.

Quinn and Jeff had this conversation many times over the past year. Quinn wasn't going to see her dad no matter what anybody said and Jeff had stopped asking.

"I'll pass it along," he said. "You ready for this thing? I can't imagine what they want us say about this damn company. I mean having him sign those contracts was ten years ago. I only remember the name of the company because of the one percent."

Quinn shook her head. "Two percent. Each. And we're major stockholders Jeff."

Jeff had always thought Gecko was a stupid startup. When Oliver Van Trypp turned it into a multi billion dollar company and the thing went public, the one percent of stock they'd each been given for services rendered and the one percent each of them had bought in for with five thousand dollar investments had made them both very rich. Jeff still bad mouthed the company but only in private to Quinn. Publicly he knew it would be a disaster if one of the company's biggest stockholders was bad mouthing the company.

"It's a hassle," Jeff said leaning back in his chair. "My mother was trying to get me to come to work for her at the firm. I didn't understand it. I mean I knew she understood I don't have to work, the firm handles most of my investments and she's made us both a lot of money." Quinn nodded. Jeff's mom handled most of her investments too and over the years she'd helped Quinn build an empire. She surely knew how rich her son was. "So I didn't understand what she wanted me at the firm for, in some token VP position. Turns out she wanted to get a foothold into Gecko. If she had my votes she'd be able to buy her way onto the board of directors. She was using me."

Quinn wanted to feel sorry for him but in the scheme of things his mom's crime was a petty misdemeanor. Her father was a parental felon. He'd used Quinn's name and influence around town to make himself rich, and he didn't hesitate throwing her name around as a veiled threat against people who got in his way. There were some things about him she knew he was terrible at, being a father was one of them, being a good businessman wasn't.

"These are rich people's problems Jeff. Your mother wants to stage some corporate takeover or something. It doesn't mean she doesn't love you, it means she loves you but she wants your votes."

Jeff shrugged. "Why would I agree to that? Ollie's made us both rich."

Quinn nodded. "True. When Gecko went public our two percent stock stake was worth billions of dollars. Your mom actually yelled at you for not investing more than five grand. Five thousand dollars to make over two billion seems worth it to me and Ollie's been good to us. We've always voted his way, changing that now would be disloyal. Besides your mom isn't going to disown you if you disagree, your one of her biggest clients. And if you leave her firm it would be devastating for business. If her own son doesn't want her handling his money why should anyone else?"

Jeff laughed. "True. I do have leverage."

Quinn nodded. "You do. You don't need her money, you just need her to be your mother. Ollie gave you the gift of financial independence and that alone is worth voting his way."

Jeff started to speak but his voice died halfway through another thought. Quinn watched as his eyes focused on something coming down the hall. Jeff didn't rattle easy but when he did Quinn often got concerned. She followed his eyes as they rose slowly in front of them and when she turned her head to see what he was looking at her jaw dropped.

"Hello Quinn. Jeffrey."

"Rachel?" Quinn asked. It was like seeing a ghost. Or a movie star, she couldn't decide.

* * *

Quinn looked nervous and Rachel saw her grab a cane sitting by her side and begin to pull herself to her feet. Jeff was on his feet and offering assistance which Quinn accepted willingly. Carol had told Rachel that Quinn and Jeff's accident years ago had caused nerve damage to Quinn's already delicate spine. The result had been a loss of feeling in her lower leg and foot. She'd been saddled with a cane for nearly ten years now. Carol and Jeff had an amicable break up roughly a year later and Carol eventually married but she kept in contact with Quinn and Jeff. According to Carol Quinn was doing okay and had embraced her small disability with typical Quinn flair. Her cane collection was rumored to be worth millions of dollars. Rachel glanced at the one she was using today and smiled. A yellow smiley face handle with a long black body and yellow rubber tip against the ground. It was totally out of place from her conservative dress and blue cashmere sweater but it somehow fit.

"Quinn," Rachel said embracing her in a careful hug. Quinn tensed in her arms and when she pulled away Brittany followed suit.

"Quinn!" Brittany said enthusiastically. "I haven't seen you in forever. You were supposed to come to California last month."

Quinn nodded. "I know, something came up," she looked around carefully. "Where's Satan?"

"Santana's making her TV show," Brittany said in her usual matter of fact tone.

Santana was currently staring in a hit police drama on Fox. Her character Detective Rosa Cruz was the breakout star of the ensemble show and had made her rich and famous. Santana had handled celebrity with her typical bitchy attitude. Yelling at paparazzi, speaking out about things out of her realm of expertise and basically making a nuisance of herself. Yet she still managed to charm the pants off her fans. Despite her annoying personal habits she was loved by the public. Just when you thought she couldn't be any more horrible she'd win you over. She was a notorious huge tipper and had once even surprised an injured teen by visiting him at home and forcing him to go to physical therapy, he'd previously been sitting around feeling sorry for himself according to his mother. She'd taken to celebrity like a duck to water. Last year when she'd had to renew her contract on the show Rachel had even done her a favor and guest starred in an episode. She said she'd only agree if they'd allow her to play the villain, she'd totally overacted the part and had secretly hoped to make a fool of herself. It hadn't worked. She'd won an Emmy instead.

"Brittany travels with me when Santana's busy working," Rachel explained.

"I heard that," Quinn said sounding almost awkward. "Did you guys hear Mr. Schue and Ms. Pillsbury had another baby?"

Rachel laughed. "Mrs. Schue you mean?"

Quinn rolled her eyes. "She'll always be Ms. Pillsbury to me," she looked at Rachel suddenly serious. "Mr. Schue told me that you and Santana always taking a second to thank him when you win awards means the world to him."

Rachel had never forgotten all Mr. Schue had done for her. If not for the Glee club she'd probably have never made it. "Of course I thank him, he's Mr. Schue."

Brittany nodded knowingly. "He is."

"Are you busy after this? We should catch up," Rachel threw out like a net. She'd thought about Quinn so much over the years. Seeing her brought everything rushing back, all those old feelings. She had only seen her in magazines and newspaper business sections but every time she did something in her body seemed to ignite.

"I don't know, I had plans with Jeff."

Jeff shook his head. "I'll push that back, go on."

Quinn nodded, still awkward. "Okay."

Rachel smiled. "Great. We'll have lunch."

* * *

People were staring but for the first time in years they weren't staring at her. Quinn kept reminding herself that it was Rachel they were looking at. Rachel Berry, movie star, not Quinn Fabray business titan and demon woman.

Rachel seemed oblivious to the attention. She was sipping on her water as if they were alone in the room. Quinn didn't like the strange silence so she decided to poke Rachel a bit.

"I see you kept Sophie on."

Rachel only shrugged and rested her chin in her hands. "She's useful, but make no mistake. She works for ME, not the other way around." She laughed. "She tried to rebel a few years ago, start up her own firm, leave me behind. Somebody crushed her like a bug."

Quinn cleared her throat nervously.

Rachel only laughed. "I knew it was you."

"Who said it was me?"

"Of course it was. Like it was you who convinced Fox to hire Santana for her TV show."

Quinn shook her head nervously. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

Rachel smiled at her and Quinn wondered how she'd walked away from that smile all those years ago. "Of course you don't. But since we're being honest I want to say something I should have said ten years ago."

Quinn's interest was suddenly piqued. "What's that?"

"I'm sorry."

"For what?"

Rachel leaned back in her chair and looked Quinn in the eyes. "For leaving that hospital. I've regretted it every day since. I should have stayed with you. It was the biggest mistake of my life."

Quinn shook her head. Ancient history. Besides she's not sure she would have been okay with that. She'd only come out to her parents a year ago. Or stopped trying to hide who she was at least.

"That's old news Rachel. Besides, you made the right choice, look at you. You're Rachel Berry. You've won a Grammy, an Emmy and an Oscar. All your missing is the Tony to become number twelve on the list."

Rachel sighed. "None of that means anything. Awards, money, fame. Awards are just something to put on a shelf. It took me becoming famous to realize I didn't actually want that. And as for money if I'd have stuck with you like I wanted to in my heart, I'd be okay. You're loaded. I could have been your girl toy."

Quinn couldn't help but laugh. "My girl toy?"

"Sure, why not, I could lay around all day in lingerie and at night I could let you eat whip cream off me."

Quinn could feel herself blush and decided to change the subject. "But all your dreams came true. Isn't this life what you've always wanted?"

Rachel shook her head. "You know, I came to New York because I wanted to be on Broadway. It's ironic that I haven't been on a Broadway stage in nine years. I never wanted to be a movie star, or a pop star. I've made movies and albums and had concerts but at the end of the day a stage on Broadway would have been enough."

"You can still do Broadway," Quinn said doing her best to sound supportive.

"It's not the same. I'm not the same person."

That was true. This Rachel wasn't the old Rachel. This Rachel couldn't walk down the street with her and disappear into a crowd. This Rachel couldn't take her for a romantic picnic in Central Park. Everything was different now.

"Well maybe you can find that girl again."

Rachel smiled. "The only girl I wanted to find again is sitting in front of me."

"You're a lot bolder than I remember," Quinn said smiling.

"I'm just being who you taught me to be. I want to have you back in my life."

Quinn's heartbeat quickened. Was she serious? "Really?"

"You said years ago that we had to break up so we can find one another again. Well I've found you. I'm ready for it to last forever."

"Rachel, it's been ten years."

She shrugged. "So what. Are you with someone, because I have no problem stealing you away? And I have more money than I can ever spend. I don't need to work. The last time I was truly happy was when I was with you. I chose wrong all those years ago."

"Rachel."

"Just give me your number. I'll call you."

Quinn wanted to steel herself and say no but she couldn't. She hadn't wanted anything more than Rachel. Seeing her again had reminded her just how much she missed her. All those years ago she'd regretted breaking things off. She wondered every day if she'd done the right thing, dreamed about a life that could have been.

"You'll call me?" It sounded like such a line but they both knew it had overtones of something special. A shared history.

Rachel nodded. "Friday night at five o'clock."

Week 538

Quinn-New York

Quinn's stomach was in knots as she waited for the phone to ring. So much had changed but so much had stayed the same. She wasn't at Yale anymore and her roommate was now her mother instead of Jules. Jules lived in Paris with her husband and two of her three children. Her third child, a girl named Sara, lived with her father Dustin and his partner Alec in Texas.

When the phone rang Quinn tried hard to sound calm when she answered. "Hello."

"It's me." Rachel said casually. She sounded so calm with all of this, so okay. As if relighting an old candle was the most normal thing in the world. Quinn was terrified however. She'd have been pacing the floor if her body had allowed her the luxury.

"Hey, I almost expected you not to call."

Rachel laughed. "Liar. The last time I broke a promise to you I didn't see you for ten years."

"About that, our breakup" Quinn began.

"Was the right thing for you to do. My priorities were mixed up. But they aren't anymore. I have a house in New York you know. We live in the same city. It's not like seeing each other will take a 90 minute train ride."

Quinn didn't know what to say to that. "Are we just supposed to pick up where we left off?" That didn't sound at all practical. It sounded fun, just not practical.

Rachel surprised her again. "No, of course not. We should have a few dates first. I'll make you dinner. You'll pretend it's good when it really isn't. We'll dance around having our second first kiss. Then I'll find a reason to stay the night at your house. Then we'll find a reason to sleep in the same bed. The first night we'll cuddle like we did when we were eighteen. The next morning I'll get naked in front of you after a shower. After our next date we'll make love. We'll date for a while and I'll start staying over every night. Eventually I'll get a drawer, then a closet, then a key. And one day another ten years will have passed and we'll wonder how we ever lived apart from one another."

Quinn couldn't believe her ears. "You have it all planned out."

"Sure, I'm not going to let you get away again. I've been in love with you for ten years and I know it's going to take a while to get you back but I'm willing to wait. I'm not leaving New York until we're together again. I know I'm coming on strong but I'm a spoiled Hollywood movie star now, I'm entitled."

Quinn decided at that moment that she was onboard. She'd had relationships over the years but they all paled in comparison to what she'd shared with Rachel. And even though she wasn't quite as sure about their future as Rachel was she WAS willing to give them a second chance.

"So when is this first date?" She asked.

"That's the thing. I learned in Hollywood that celebrities don't actually have to wait for things. I don't wait in lines anymore. I figured I'd save us a couple of steps."

Quinn laughed. "Yeah, how?"

"Open your door."

Quinn's heart pounded. "I don't answer my own door anymore."

It was Rachel's turn to laugh. "I don't mean your front door. I mean the door to your bedroom. I'm waiting for you there. I figured I'd just skip to the part where we have sex. It's much more efficient and way more fun."

Quinn couldn't help but laugh. This surely wasn't the Rachel she remembered but somehow this Rachel was just as exciting. More exciting even, this Rachel didn't beat around the bush or hold back what she was thinking. It had been years since somebody besides Jeff and her father treated her like a person.

She grabbed her cane and walked slowly towards her bedroom. Quinn had been sitting in the den watching TV and doing her best to keep her mind off Rachel's call, she hadn't heard the door bell ring.

"How did you get in anyway? People are supposed to tell me when I have visitors."

"Your mom let me in. She likes me. She still calls me sweetheart," Rachel bragged. Quinn didn't have the heart to tell her that her mother called half of New York sweetheart when she spoke to them.

"I'm coming, it just takes me a minute. I'm a lot slower than you remember." Quinn's cane had always been a thing she'd been uncomfortable talking about. It was always there, making itself known, but most people didn't ask. It had taken her a long time to wrap her mind around the fact that there were certain things she wouldn't be able to do any more. She wouldn't run, or jump, or cheer ever again. That part of her life was behind her and she'd made her peace with it. Still it made her uncomfortable having to explain it to someone new.

Rachel didn't blink. "I don't mind waiting for you. And don't ever apologize. My Quinn doesn't apologize to anyone. You're Darth Vader, do you ever remember him apologizing to Spock?"

Quinn laughed. "Okay, for a movie star you're crappy at the 'who played what role' game."

"I don't do Sci-fi. But if you come cuddle with me I may do some light porno."

"In that case count me in."

Week 539

Rachel-New York

Rachel walked into the kitchen and gave Quinn a light kiss on the cheek. "I was thinking I may want to get a job and stick around for a while."

Quinn was in a pair of light blue men's boxer shorts and a tank top. It was barely six am but Rachel felt her climb out of bed nearly an hour ago. She didn't remember that about her, waking up early. Back in the day Rachel was always the early bird. Now she could easily sleep until noon. The only reason Rachel actually woke up early this morning was because she reached out to grab Quinn and pull her close and couldn't find her.

"What kind of job, Wal-Mart greeter?"

Rachel laughed. "Broadway. Would you have a problem if I stuck around f or a bit?"

Quinn shrugged. "I don't think I'd mind."

"Good." She could smell coffee and began searching for a cup. "Where does everybody go when I come over? I thought you said you had people to do things for you? There's never anybody here."

"I usually just send them home for the night. I don't think they'd say anything but I don't want this sold to TMZ."

Rachel found a stash of coffee mugs in the cabinet and pulled one out to make herself some coffee. She hadn't bothered to get fully dressed choosing instead to walk around the house in a light pink nightie. Just like old times.

"You want to keep us a secret?" She finally asked. Quinn hadn't said anything about keeping things quiet but apparently she hadn't had to.

"I don't want this to influence your career Rachel."

Rachel had dated both men and women after she'd ended things with Quinn. Sophie always made sure the pictures of her with men found their way to the tabloids. The women she'd dated, mostly actresses themselves didn't want the relationship publicized either. Her longest relationship had been with a Swedish actress, they'd spent nearly a year together. Their lack of PDA and publicity had only resulted in a friendship article in the tabloids. When they'd broken up another story had been published about their huge blow up and ended friendship. Lesbian hadn't been mentioned once.

This seemed different. She didn't mind if people knew she was dating Quinn. "I don't care about that Quinn."

"You should, you have a career to consider. Your only twenty eight. You can be a leading lady for another ten years before they find another hot young number to replace you."

Rachel shrugged. "I don't want Hollywood, not if it means I can't have you. I've tried that and it's miserable Quinn. It doesn't work for me. I choose Broadway. I can be home every night to cuddle with you."

Quinn still looked as she were uncomfortable and Rachel forced herself to smile. She may have been this feared maniac to everybody else but Rachel could still see her Quinn inside. The Quinn that had been nervous and sometimes awkward around her. Scared of doing things wrong and making herself look foolish.

"I want to be with you Rachel but I don't want us moving at a hundred miles an hour. We did that last time and things didn't work out."

Rachel only shook her head. "Whether we go five miles per hour or a hundred we're going to the same place Quinn and I'll wait for you to get ready. Just remember you're not who these people think you are. I can still see my Quinn when I look at you. That girl you want to be instead of who you have to be. You don't have to be her anymore. You've gotten everything you wanted. It's time for both of us to slow down and smell the roses."

"I thought I was Darth Vader." Quinn said. She'd seemingly let the comment roll off her back but a week later she still remembered it. Typical Quinn.

"The lawyer at the trial said that. He was telling the other lawyers not to make you angry. I figured with a scary reputation like that you'd surely have heard worse. I mean you were the Ice Queen back in Lima."

Quinn laughed. "Fear comes in handy."

"So does love," Rachel said as she kissed her on the cheek. "Now grab that cane and get your butt back in bed. I'm not done cuddling."

Quinn rolled her eyes. "Again?"

Rachel smiled just in time to see Quinn laugh. "Just like old times, now come on Captain Kirk, lets go get back in bed."

Quinn shook her head. "God you're the worst actress ever. That's not the same guy."

"You can tell me all about it in bed, now let's go."

**Thanks for reading. I tried to make my Quinn twist as painless as possible. Initially I intended to for it to be much more damaging (a prolonged hospital stay) but when I decided to give them a happy ending I decided not to include it in the story. I did my best to give you a glimpse into the lives of the major players to see what they were up to years later. I hope that didn't throw too many of you off, the time jump, but I didn't see how Quinn and Rachel could reconcile as is. I fast forwarded into the future because I figured it would give them both time to focus on themselves, chase their dreams, and find one another again. And as I've always said they're perfect for one another even if they didn't realize it right away. They both seem to understand now but it took them spending time together to see they'd reverted to living life as the characters they'd created for themselves. Rachel however is much more self aware and uses it to her advantage to snag Quinn back, Quinn on the other hand is still in defense mode. Almost immediately though her true personality begins to creep out when Rachel makes a reappearance into her life. Thanks for reading. I hope I entertained you, and I'll be back when inspiration finds me again. Until then, read and review and let me know what you think. **

**Empty Pen **


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